Biner_Leseprobe

Around 1850, tourist influx gradually increased and in the following years
the Britons and their mountain guides (mostly native to Zermatt, Chamonix
or the Bernese Oberland) climbed many of the great 4,000m peaks around
Zermatt. In 1857, the British Alpine Club was founded – the very first alpine
club in the entire world. To date, the Alpine Club gives relevant impetus to
mountaineering worldwide. In Zermatt and other alpine centres, the British
pioneers acted as a driving force, pushing to explore new heights and
peaks. Almost all of them treated the mountain guides well, appreciated
their skills and performance and compensated them accordingly.
The Matterhorn represents the completion of all these first ascents. Just a
few other peaks, which had been ‘overlooked’, were later added to the list,
such as the Dürrenhorn. The following Zermatt guides at that time deserve
special mentioning:
The old Hotel Riffelberg.
Up until the first huts
were built, it served as
point of departure for
most tours between
the Breithorn and the
Strahlhorn.
14 The conquest of the Zermatt Mountains