Hiking in Zermatt in May
 

Hello,

I will be in Zermatt on May 30. I am hoping to take a Gornergrat train to the top station and then do some hiking. I have a few questions

1) Has anyone hiked in the Zermatt area in late May? How is the weather, the trails? Most guide books indicate that hiking season starts in mid-June.

2) I have done some reading, and found that Sunnega-to-Riffelalp is a nice, relatively easy hike with great views. Does anyone have other suggestions for an easy to moderate half-day hike? I am not a hard-code hiker.

Thank you all in advance.

I wish I could tell you about late May, but I have not been there then.

IF the snow is acceptable in terms of depth and the trail is something other than a mudbath, the walk from Riffelalp to the Gornergrat is a good one.

The trail roughly parallels the rail line, so getting lost is not really a factor. You are above the tree line and the terrain is fairly flat for the Alps.

To the west is the Matterhorn. To the south is the huge bulk of Monte Rosa.

I recommned the scenery at least even if the path is gooey. Of course if the darn thing is a quagmire, or 3 feet deep in snow, then you will need to modify your plans.

Snow has been falling all week around Zermatt, so who knows what conditions will be in late May.

Given that the terrain is exposed with no trees to shade it, a few days of sunshine should dry out the trail. Unfortunately, rain will also wet it thoroughly.

You will still find some snow in late May (you still find patches in mid to late June too), and it will be muddy and wet, but should be doable. Always check with the tourist office in Zermatt (or your hotel) to make sure a trail is open before you start out. Actual hiking boots which can give some grip in mud and are waterproof would be better than sneakers on trails in late May IMO; if you don’t have them get some now and break them in. Weather can of course be changeable in moments, so bring and wear layers that you can add or take off as it warms up or cools down. I always bring gloves and a hat because they are easy to pack and are always welcome if it becomes suddenly very cold. An extra pair of socks is also very welcome if you boots get really wet.

The Sunegga-Riffelalp walk is excellent and not difficult. You do NOT take the Gornegratbahn train to get to it, however (assume you may know this but thought I would mention it), you take the underground Sunnegga train/funicular. There are some interesting divergent paths which are worth exploring from here, especially to the little village of Findelen where the wonderful Chez Vrony restaurant can be found (www.chezvrony.ch). This may be worth going back to on another day for a long lunch outdoors on their terrace with their fantastic Matterhorn view. At the end of the walk when you get to the Rifflealp station on the Gornegratbahn, you can walk about 100 meters to the Rifflealp hotel where they have an outdoor restaurant and have lunch or a drink (zermatt.ch/riffelalp , expensive), or take the train uphill one station to the Riffleberg station and walk downhill a few hundred yards to the less expensive self-serve restaurant (it’s still ski resort prices), or walk a bit further downhill to the Riffleberg hotel and restaurant (matterhorn-group.ch).

I am not sure I understood the suggestion from poster above about walking FROM Rifflealp TO the Gornegrat. That would be quite an UPHILL walk. (He must be in better shape than me!) However, it is a very pleasant downhill walk from the Gornegrat station (which is the top station on the Gornegratbahn) TO the Riffelalp station (which is the first and lowest station). This walk follows the train tracks and ski trails and is a quite gentle downhill walk in view of the Matterhorn virtually the entire way. (Which you might miss if you did it in reverse uphill). You can stop for a meal at the Riffleberg or at the Rifflealp. From the Gornegrat station to the Rifflealp station would not take you more than 1.5 hours, maybe 2 if you were slower. You can even walk all the way down into Zermatt itself in about another 1.5-2 2. It becomes steeper between Rifflealp and the town, and there are some stairs and switchbacks and at that point you are below the treeline, but it is still a pleasant walk.

There is a tourist office in downtown Zermatt and you can find walking trail maps in the train station and at all cable cars and mountain train stations. They generally will also give weather reports and indicate what popular trail conditions are as well.

If you have time to go over to the Saas Fee valley, there is some very good walking along the valley floor here that is not difficult, and will give you some excellent mountian views as well. There is also some good walking up around the village of Saas Fee which is very charming too (and not full of tourists like Zermatt....but then it does not have the Matterhorn)

As I recall the trail from Riffelalp to the Gornergrat, it was not bad at all in terms of elevation gain.

We got off at the Riffelalp station at 2,200 meters and walked to the Gornergrat viewing area at 3,090 meters.

You gain the 2,400 feet or so gradually.
We made a few detours to get a better look over the side and into the glacial valley well below.

The route takes you by the Riffelhorn, which is a popular test climb site for would-be mountaineers.

I was 66 years old when I did it and don't recall being in any great shape. Although the following year I did stagger from the parking lot by Lac de Moiry up to the Cabane de Moiry. The gain is about 600 vertical meters, but the trail is flat at first, and then it ascends steeply.

Coming back, we got off the main trail (which is diffuse and barely marked) and had to descend a long snow bank that had turned into hard granular snow/ice.

My hiking poles would not penetrate the surface no matter how hard I stabbed with them. I remember sliding down the thing feet first because that was the easiest way. Nylon slides rather nicely on granular snow.

The shelter cabin was the scene of the most precarious outhouse perch I have ever seen. The facility was actually suspended over the edge of the cliff.

I am not sure I would want to venture out to use it at night after a few beers!!

I'm still impressed at your walking UP it for 2,400 feet, as it is one of my favourite things to SKI down!! The "chute" which runs along the train tracks above the Rifflealp hotel is esppecially fun to speed along on skis....

So, if one wants to walk FROM Rifflealp TO Gornergrat (uphill), how do you get to the start? Thanks.

Take the Gornegratbahn train from Zermatt village to the Rifflealp station. Look for trail signs, should be yellow signs, they may say "Riffleberg" as the first point you get to on the walk. (The Rifflealp station is the first station on the route, although technically there is one residential station below this that the train sometimes stops at if requested, but you can't miss the Rifflealp station.)