Matterhorn, Hörnli grat, the most classical shape of a mountain

Written By Jeroen Roosen
Photographing the impressive Matterhorn, the most classical shape of a mountain. Matterhorn has an altitude of 4478 meter and is located at the Swiss - Italian border. The name Matterhorn is deducted from Matter which means meadow and Horn which means summit. It has 4 walls facing the main points of the compass, north, east, south and west. A local mountain guide climbed it 371 times, the last time at the age of 90.

Photographing the impressive Matterhorn, the most classical shape of a mountain. Matterhorn has an altitude of 4478 meter and is located at the Swiss - Italian border. The name Matterhorn is deducted from Matter which means meadow and Horn which means summit. It has 4 walls facing the main points of the compass, north, east, south and west. A local mountain guide climbed it 371 times, the last time at the age of 90.

Q3, 2020

Matterhorn is an iconic mountain. It has a perfect classical mountain shape. Its characteristic pyramid shape is so recognizable for what a mountain should look like and a symbol for Switzerland. If you ask children to draft a mountain, there is a big chance they will draw something like the Matterhorn. Standing alone, impressive, huge, high, unapproachable, terrifying, confrontational.

Early morning frost before sunrise at our camp site

Early morning frost before sunrise at our camp site, just after the blue hour

On a weekday in September, while checking the weather apps, light rainfall during most of the night was forecasted with a zero-degree Celsius level sinking to around and about the three-thousand-meter level. That was the moment to grab the car keys, the tent, the down sleeping bag, and a few other things such as my camera. This was a chance to get a white late summer appearance of the Matterhorn contrasting with a clear blue early morning sky. Off we went with an idea.

Nature is unpredictable and we have been unfortunate, many times. But not this time….
Next morning, at sunrise, I captured five vertical photos to stitch later in post-processing into one horizontal photo. This technique makes it possible to capture even the finest details. If you zoom in on the Hörnli ridge, you will find the Hörnli mountain cabin, which offers space for 150 climbers. As a reference point, it shows the dimension of this massive mountain.  

The photo of the Matterhorn is part of the mountain collection. Moments in Mountains delivers prints of impressive mountain photos at home and at the office.

Sunrise

Nikon Z7ii, Nikkor 85mm. F1.8S, 1/320sec, F 7.1, ISO 100, 29 August 2021 at 07:04 CET. To capture the finest detail 6 vertical photos are stitched into one, of which 5 in this image.
First sunbeams lighting the Hörnli ridge.

First sun ray’s are warming our tent

First sun ray’s are warming us in our tent

A soft flash is lighting an oval shaped round rock in the foreground, contrasting with the edgy shaped Matterhorn, that is bathing in the sun for several minutes already. Nikon Z7ii, 14-30mm lens at 14mm, f14, 1/25 sec, ISO 100

Braking up and preparing to hike back to Zermatt

Hiking back to Zermatt, deep into the valley

Hiking back to Zermatt, deep into the valley, meanwhile enjoying the view across the valley to 4000 meters peaks that have been climbed in the past: Dom, Täschhorn, Alphubel, Rimpfischhorn, Dufourspitze and Lyskamm.

Jeroen Roosen https://www.momentsinmountains.com
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