Probably at number one on the list of “places I’d love to visit but probably never will” is the Mittellegi Hut, perched on the ridge of the same name near the summit of the Eiger. It’s famous amongst climbers as it’s along the approach route from the Eismeer station of the Jungfrau Railway, en route for climbers heading for the summit.

The modern building was installed in 2001, replacing the original hut which dates back to 1924 and providing a total of 30 beds for climbers (opposed to the 16 available spaces in its predecessor). The old hut was removed in one piece by helicopter and after a stint as a museum piece at the Eigergletscher station, it was moved a short distance to the nearby and more accessible Eiger Walk in 2011.

The attraction of the mountain hut on the ridge is its extreme location: not only is it at 3,355m above sea level, but it sits astride the terrifically narrow ridge to such an extent that its base is on a platform which extends out over the adjacent drop. On the northern side, the near-vertical cliff face drops 1,800m to the Alpiglen station; on the southern, to the upper reaches of the Eismeer glacier.

Mittellegihütte + Eismeer

(The photographs accompanying this blog post were taken by Flickr members, and are linked to their accounts.)

One response to “The Mittellegi Hut”

  1. Kenneth Lawver avatar
    Kenneth Lawver

    Thankyou, I’ve been looking for a little history on this lodge.

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