Switzerland > On Top of the Gornergrat

Breakfast is served in the hotel’s basement. There is a nice buffet ready. We are reminded to wear plastic gloves when taking anything. We hadn’t seen this variant before. After breakfast, we cross the street and walk to the station. At the ticket counter, we buy two return tickets from Täsch to Zermatt. Zermatt is car-free and can only be reached by car by residents. All other visitors must take the train. Just before we step onto the platform, we receive a flyer offering 20% discount on the mountain train if we go hiking on Gornergrat mountain. That is indeed our plan. Exactly how the discount works isn’t entirely clear yet; we’ll see in Zermatt. The train arrives just then. We put on our face masks and board. In ten minutes, the train runs through the mountains to Zermatt, the last village in the valley. When we leave the station in Zermatt, we already see the mountain train to Gornergrat waiting on the other side. We plan to travel to the top of Gornergrat and walk back from there. When we’re tired, we can take the train back. Because we don’t know exactly via which station we will return, a return ticket doesn’t make sense. So the 20% discount on a return ticket doesn’t apply either. We buy two one-way tickets to the top of the mountain. The discount vouchers we received yesterday come in handy. Without the vouchers, tickets cost 55 euros per person. With the discount, we pay “only” 15 euros for two tickets. The train is already waiting

Switzerland - The Gornergrat mountain train

. Practically the entire train is full. Good business if everyone has a 50-euro ticket for a one-way trip. Zermatt lies at 1,608 meters altitude. Just outside the station, the track climbs steeply. The train is pulled uphill by a cogwheel in the middle of the track. This way, it gains height quickly. We see Zermatt shrinking behind us. When the train reaches above the tree line, we see the enormous Alpine mountains. There is still a lot of snow on the mountain peaks. A fellow traveler points out the highest peak. “That’s the Matterhorn,” he says, and enthusiastically continues, “and today it’s surprisingly clearly visible.” Usually, the peak is hidden in clouds. Quickly, we take a photo of this impressive Alpine giant. The peak is 4,478 meters high, making it one of the top ten highest mountains in Switzerland. The higher we get, the more mountains and glaciers we see. What a magnificent sight. At the top of Gornergrat, we get off. There is a fresh breeze. It’s to be expected because we’re at 3,135 meters altitude. Behind us lies the Matterhorn. Just below us are glaciers, including the Gornergrat glacier. What a stunning view over the Alps. In the mountain restaurant, we order something to drink. Around half past eleven, we start the descent. The first part leads to Riffelsee, a mountain lake on the slope. We slowly descend.

Switzerland - The impressive peak of the Matterhorn

The view of the giant mountains remains magnificent from every angle. After about an hour’s walk, we see the mountain lake. Normally, you would see the Matterhorn reflected in the lake. However, the tall mountain has withdrawn into the clouds. Fortunately, we saw it clearly earlier today. From Riffelsee, we continue walking to Riffelberg. This is the second stop on the cogwheel railway. We decide to keep walking. In a quiet spot, we enjoy our lunch. It’s wonderful to eat our sandwich in nature. Around half past one, we approach the fork between Riffelalp and Zermatt. According to the flyer, the descent to Zermatt takes ninety minutes. We decide to continue down to the valley. We go lower and lower and already see Zermatt in the distance. When we think we’re almost in Zermatt, we see a signpost indicating another one hour and twenty minutes.

Switzerland - The descent to Zermatt is stunning

That is over an hour longer than we expected. We experience déjà vu from the hike in Liechtenstein. At exactly four o’clock, we walk into the winter sports town. It is busy in the picturesque center. Old wooden houses alternate with hotels and shops. On a terrace, we order a well-deserved glass of beer. It tastes great after a descent of 1,500 meters altitude. We then take the train back to Täsch. On the square near the station, there is still a hotel with a restaurant. Here, there is exactly one table available to eat tonight. Not many more restaurants are open in summer. We quickly reserve it. A cozy restaurant with friendly service. Unfortunately, the order goes wrong. Instead of a rösti pizza, a macaroni dish is served. The waitress asks if we want to accept the meal but still has the kitchen prepare the pizza. Because of this, we cannot eat simultaneously. The meal itself tastes no less good.