The
Eiger is one of the most famous and
feared mountains in the world, due
to the renowned difficulty of the
routes on it's North face or 'Nordwand'.
For those looking to climb this great
mountain by a less dangerous method,
there are a choice of routes up the
mountain, namely the Mittellegi Ridge
and the South Arete. The Mittellegi
Ridge is the most popular choice, followed by the South Arete.
Many
famous Alpine summits can be climbed
with a low amount of skill or talent.
This is not so for the Eiger, and inexperienced
peak baggers should beware that their
chances of success will be low. To consider
yourself for this course, you should
be very fit, have good footwork on steep
ground (including on rock with crampons),
and also have good ropework skills.
This
course should also appeal to those who
have attended a Classics, Mont Blanc
Summits or Matterhorn course. If you
have significant previous rock climbing
experience, but not much crampon or
alpine experience, this can be developed
over the week of the course as of greater
importance are your ropework, ability
with exposure and balance / stability
on your crampons.
This
course is run on a 1:2 Guiding ratio
for the first three days, so the Guide
can assess and develop your skills and
abilities before attempting the Eiger
(1:1 ratio), to move at your speed. The decent of the Eiger, via the South Ridge or West Flank, is longer than the ascent itself, so try and include this into your training, and also be ready for it in your mindset on the main climb.
One night in the Mittellegi (or Monchsjoch) mountain hut
is included in the price. To keep the
price lower, and give you the
greatest route flexibility, your cable
cars in Chamonix and Grindelwald are
not included in the course price, and
when you go to the Eiger you pay for the Guide cable car (budget
on around £160 total).
Dates: these
are listed in the column on the right,
and they show the live availability
from our secure online booking system.
When you book online, you receive immediate
confirmation, your Alpine Information
Booklet, course specific kit list and
invoice.
Brief
Course Itinerary
Day 1| Sunday
Travel to Chamonix. Accommodation check in at 17:00. Mont Blanc specific course safety and itinerary briefing at 17:30.
There is time for kit checks or fitting rental equipment after.
Briefings are over by 18:30 and then you are free to go out for dinner / drinks. Many clients opt
to travel out a day or two early to start their acclimatisation at Aiguille du Midi or with a night in a mountain hut (e.g. Cosmiques or Albert 1er). Night in Chamonix. Gallery: Chamonix town
Day 2 | Monday
Climbing
on the sunny side of the valley: the Aiguilles Rouges.
Popular routes include the Chapelle de la Gliere
with its knife edge traverse or the L'Index. The objective of the day is to get you moving quickly and efficently over pitch after pitch, exactly like you would be doing on the Eiger, and to make your belay transitions and ropework really slick. The highlight is the razor pitch of the climb. Guiding
ratio 1:2 (max). Night in Chamonix. Gallery: Chapelle de la Gliere
Day 3 | Tuesday
Altitude
Route: Either climb Aiguille d'Entreves or
the Marbrée Arete. Possibility of staying
in a hut for the night, such as the Torino,
for an Alpine start the next day. The traverse of Entreves is a great route, super exposed, but on good rock. You can pose on the infamous granite needle in mid traverse. It's great training for the Eiger, technically, for the exposure, and to help you acclimatise well. Guiding
ratio 1:2 (max) Gallery: Aiguilles d'Entreves
Day 4 | Wednesday
Either
another day route such as the Chere Couloir,
or an Alpine start from the hut for a route
such as the Dent du Geant or the Rochefort
Arete. Whatever route you decide, will be based on what's the ideal for your preparation, tailored to not tire you too much, but also to ensure you are ready for the main ascent. Other route options include the Midi Plan or Perrons traverses. Return to Chamonix for the night. Guiding ration 1:2 (max). Gallery: Dent du Geant
Day 5 | Thursday
An easier day, to travel
over to Grindelwald. Ascend the Jungfraujoch
railway to the Eismeer station, where you go through the tunnels to the doorway above the glacier. After descending onto the glacier, which is quickly crossed, it takes 1.5 to 2 hours or airy scrambling and climbing to reach the spectacularly located Mittelleg mountain hut for the night. If ascending the South ridge you head to the Monchsjoch hut. Guiding ratio 1:1 (max). Gallery: Eiger traverse
Day 6 | Friday
Alpine
start for the ascent of the Mittellegi (or South) Arete
of the Eiger. After you reach the summit,
you then descend the long South Ridge to Monchsjoch, which involves a surprising amount of climbing. From Monchsjoch you traverse the glacier to Jungfraujoch to catch
the Eiger train which descends to Grindelwald,
from where you return
to Chamonix, where you spend the final night
of your holiday. Guiding ratio 1:1 (max). Gallery: Eiger traverse
Day 7 | Saturday
Breakfast then the accommodation check out by
10:00. Most arrange transfers for around this
time for a flight from Geneva about midday. Some
opt to book a tandem paraglider flight in
the morning, or to go rafting, mountain biking, or trail running, if you still have the energy! Our resort team can advise you on where to arrange any of this, or routes. For those departing late, bags can be stored during the day. Depart for home. Gallery: Icicle Windermere office
ITINERARY
NOTES: Where possible we follow itineraries.
Mountain adventures are weather and conditions
dependant, so occasionaly we are forced to
alter the plans. If this is the case, suitable
alternatives are offered. Please use this
outline itinerary as a guide to the types
of route / activity that you will attempt.
Course
Prices
Standard
course
5 days guiding, 7 days holiday in total
IFMGA mountain guides for 5 days
£2995
Live
availability
Click
on the planner logo to the right to
see the real time live course availability
How to book
Secure
payments, bonded tour operator
Details of how to book, click
here
Exclusions:
1) Travel to and from Chamonix, 2) Equipment hire,
3) Personal laundry, telephone calls, lunches, evening
meals in valley, & any purchases in mountain
huts / hotels / restaurants, 4) Cable cars and uplift
for you and your guide (when required) in Chamonix and Grindelwald, 5) Optional second night in a hut
during the training days, on a half board basis
for you and your guide, 6) Activities
insurance.
Notes:
The scheduled standard course assumes 1:2 guiding
for the first 3 days. Note that is there is just
one person on a course, less 1:1 guiding days can
be offered, however accommodation will be provided
for the whole week, and guiding options and locations
will be discussed with you within the budget paid.
1:1
upgrade: Have you thought of upgrading
to a 1:1 course throughout? Some clients prefer
this strategy to provide even more flexibility during
the week, and to allow them to move on all routes,
at a more tailored pace. One key advantage is that
the Eiger itself could even be climbed over a three
day period, with two nights in huts on the mountain
(n.b. only one night is included as per inclusions
above). The 1:1 guiding ratio for the five days,
with the same other inclusions as the standard course,
costs £3795.
Course
upgrade options
Many clients on
this trip consider upgrading with one
or more of the following course additions...
Private
room
Big
5 Alpine
extensions
Technical
kit rental
Acclimatise
weekend
Upgrade
to single from
£300-£500 in addition to
standard course price,
depending on week.
Extend by 2 days after
to ascend one of the
Big 5 Alpine peaks as
an extra summit.
Rent all technical kit
for a week. Full Alpine
Bundle costs you just
£100 for the week.
Saturday
night spent in
Chamonix, with choice
of self-guided or guided
on Sunday. From £70.
Standard
course accommodation - normally clients are
based in self-catered flats (details),
so take a look, and decide if it's for you.
For more luxury, contact us for quotes in
higher standard apartments, or hotels of any
standard required. If you have / source your
own course accommodation, or we cannot provide
an upgrade, the standard course price has
a £200pp reduction applied on your invoice.
Eiger training weekend UK
This
weekend is based in the UK Lake District, with two days guiding on scrambling and rock climbing terrain. It aims to give you as much preparation on similar ground, that you will encounter on the Eiger (or Matterhorn. The UK
Matterhorn / Eiger Training weekend is guided on a 1:2 ratio, to allow you to push your level. We offer scheduled dates (see the box to the right), though if there are 2 of you booking together, we can operate this on any week that you request.
Weekend
dates
Course spaces & dates
for the UK Matterhorn Training Weekend (link)...
Climbing
the Mitilleggi Arête was
awesome, and my Guide made me feel safe
Stuart Wallace
, Eiger
I
knew it was going to be exposed, but
the summit ridge will stay in my mind
for a very long time! Thank you so much Sam
Ford , Eiger
Thanks
to Matt for guiding me and keeping me
safe all week, and to your Chamonix
team for sorting everything for me when
my baggage was delayed 24 hours Mark
Timms , Eiger
Testimonials
Press
& media
Films
& videos
Photo
gallery
Eiger Mittellegi media
Location
data for this trip
The
trips start in the Chamonix valley in the French Alps,
at the foot of Mont Blanc. It is easily accessed via a
90 minute transfer from Geneva airport.
Time
Difference
GMT +1hr
Local
Currency
€ Euros
Travel
from UK
1hr flight
Buy key items for this trip
FREE post for
UK orders over £30 FREE Icicle
neck gaiter for
orders over £50
Shopping
cart
Click
above to view online shopping
basket & pay.
Grivel Ares harness
£70.00
BD
Cosmo headtorch
£29.99
BD Vector helmet
£74.99
Extremities
Guide glove
£29.99
Oberland 1:50k map
£21.99
BD Sabretooth
£135.00
Grivel
Air Tech Evo
£130.00
BD
Epic 35l rucksack
£129.00
View
full course equipment list,
with examples of kit, click
here
Eiger magazine article
Click
on the image below to read the Eiger Mittellegi article
we wrote, which was published in Trek & Mountain magazine
recently.
Equipment - summit
day kit list...
We
send a course specific equipment list to all those booking
on our courses, but due to the popularity of this course,
we outline a typical packing list for the summit day in
the list below.
Basic
clothing - Light coloured long
sleeve wicking layer
- Schoeller / soft shell climbing trousers
- Mid layer fleece jacket / gillet
- Fleece hat and gloves, and sunhat / cap
- B2 technical mountain boots, & gaiters
Equipment - Harness, helmet, ice
axe (without leash)
- 12 point crampons and anti-balling plates
- 1 x 120cm Sling, 1 x karabiner, 1 x prussic
- Belay device for abseils (if required)
- Head torch (LED style is lightest type)
Altitude
gear - Synthetic or down insulation
jacket
- Goggles in case of high wind
- Neoprane face mask in case of wind
- Thick waterproof over gloves
- Windproof over trousers (eg PacLite)
General
kit - Close fitting sun glasses
(Factor 4 for snow)
- Pocket snacks for summit day (eg Haribos)
- Water bottle (bladder type may freeze)
- Rucksack (up to 35 litres max is ideal)
- Basic blister kit, Aspirin, suncream
Top kit tips - Take a Petzl Adjust (or similar) lanyard to make yourself safe quickly at every anchor or belay.
- Have one very big screw gate krab which opens wide, to clip onto fixed metal stakes on the peak, so as to be able to release your rope from below, if another group is using the same anchor, so you don't lose time!
Preparation - altitude
& training...
An
ascent of the Eiger should not be underestimated,
and you should arrive for this course in good physical
condition as the climb will probably be the greatest
physical exertion of your life. Please don't ignore
this issue... We highly recommend that you read
our training page (click
here) for details.
If you are worried about acclimatisation,
we recommend that you book on an Acclimatisation
Weekend before your course. to help you get acclimatised
earlier, leaving you with more summiting weather
windows for the Eiger.
Any
further questions?
A
key part of choosing a company is being able to come and
talk about your plans with an experienced course advisor
face to face. In an increasingly virtual world, we know
our clients value speaking to real people, getting open
and honest advice. The vast majority of our clients are
British, and our office and outdoor store is based in
Windermere in the English Lake District.
Get
in contact to arrange a meeting, and come in for a coffee
to discuss your course in person with a trip
advisor.
Gallery: 
