5th to 19th 4000 m summits12 August 2022 · Monte Rosa
Spaghetti Tour: the great traverse of the Monte Rosa 4000ers
The track
Distance and elevation gain from the Strava tracks; profile drawn from the GPS. Hover over the map or the profile to locate a point along the track.
The figures
From 11 August (start 12:37) to 14 August 2022 (finish 16:31) · 3 nights — Monte Rosa Hütte, Capanna Gnifetti, Rifugio Guide d’Ayas
Summits & route
The summits
Day by day
- D1Zermatt > Monte Rosa Hut
- D2Traverse of the Monte Rosa 4000ers > Capanna Gnifetti
- D3Liskamm traverse > Castor > Rifugio Guide d’Ayas
- D4Breithorn traverse > Klein Matterhorn > Zermatt
Climbing partner
Click a name to see their map.
Topos & references
The story
The famous Spaghetti Tour!
But first, why such a name? Quite simply because on this multi-day route that takes in a series of summits, climbers cross the Italian–Swiss border several times... but spend most of their time on the Italian side. And tradition has it that the wardens of Italian huts always serve a delicious plate of pasta to fill hungry climbers' stomachs — hence the name of this loop!
D1 — Approach
An imminent blitzkrieg for the Trumpet and the Bread in the Monte Rosa massif: Alexandre has joined me from Belgium for our first big multi-day alpine adventure together. The troops' morale is set fair, and we're looking forward to whatever the mountains have in store for us!
D2 — A 4000er heptathlon
A very early start for a long, continuous climb of more than 2000 metres of ascent to the highest point of the massif (the Dufourspitze), before linking up the Zumsteinspitze, the Signalkuppe (also known as Punta Gnifetti), the Parrotspitze, the Ludwigshöhe, the Corno Nero and the Vincent Pyramid.
In all, more than fifteen hours roaming glaciers and ridges, combining rock and mixed climbing, to finally reach the hut drained of all energy, but happy with such an intense day.
D3 — Maximum commitment
The Liskamm traverse will leave a lasting mark on us both for its very high commitment. Two kilometres of razor-thin snow ridge between 4000 m and 4500 m; one false step and you'll be joining Patrick Berhault on the spot. A steady wind from morning till night, which didn't make things any easier!
We end the day with a quick raid on Castor and its extremely sharp ridge, where sitting astride it, though far less elegant, proved wonderfully reassuring.
D4 — Breithorn quintet
We end our escapade in the Monte Rosa massif with the full traverse of the 5 Breithorns, a splendid and very long ridge climb mixing rock, snow and mixed ground.
The tally of this adventure: 15 summits above 4000 m, and a friendship ever stronger and more tightly bound in hard times.