I'n inching around a protruding rock named the Hammer. Above, an iron cable is
fixed to the cliff. Below is a dizzying 2,000ft drop into the Lauterbrunnen
Valley. One slip and I will be left swinging helplessly in midair, held only
by two ropes attached to my harness and the cable. Move over, 007. You ain't
seen nothing yet.
My pathway to adventure is a new via ferrata that snakes its way across the
cliff face near Mürren, the pretty Swiss hamlet with views across the valley
to the Eiger.
Mürren has two claims to fame: in the 1920s Sir Arnold Lunn used it as a base
to establish ski racing in the Alps, and in the 1960s On Her Majesty's
Secret Service, 007's first snow extravaganza, came to town. The dramatic
sequences shot on the Schilthorn put the village on the tourist map.
Mission accomplished, the resort fell into its customary torpor for several
decades. Enter Martin Schürmann, the mountain guide who designed the via
ferrata (iron road). The Italian idea originated in the Dolomites to assist
troop movements during the First World War, but has been revived worldwide
as a recreational facility to carry adventurous hikers into the world of the
mountaineer on a system of ladders, bridges and cables.
Schürmann's construction is suitable for any active person with a head for
heights. In fact, it is less demanding than many rivals since it starts in
the middle of the village and heads steadily down the mountain. At the
inaugural celebration in June, it was completed by an 81-year-old local and
a 12-year-old boy without embarrassment. Nonetheless, I walked through the
dark access tunnel the first morning with mixed feelings. In rain and
swirling fog, notices that read “climbing experience essential” and
“dangerous when wet” weren't reassuring.
My guide, Toni von Allmen, began the expedition with a short training session,
emphasising that we should switch only one carabiner at a time over the
anchor points on the iron cable so that we would never be unattached. Then
we were in the loop, slip-sliding towards the Hammer.
The second challenge, a wire rope across a waterfall, looked tricky, but
proved simple, while the third, a series of ladders raked backwards over the
void, was alarmingly slippery in the rain. In between we enjoyed a 130ft
(35m) zip-line across a chasm. “It's weight-bearing up to two tonnes,” Von
Allmen said, eyeing me speculatively as he launched me into the joyride.
The grand finale was a 250ft suspension bridge. A first glimpse of it in the
fog prompted a faint squeal from a hotel worker from Grindelwald, but Von
Allmen escorted her across without further alarm. Comfortingly, the steel
cables and walkway were Swiss solid - no match in the terror stakes for
swaying Himalayan counterparts.
We had plenty of thrills, but no spills. There is lots to enjoy and little to
fear, and the sense of achievement is huge. Trust me: I celebrated
enthusiastically in the Stagerstubli, Mürren's favourite pub - and I wasn't
the only one.
Need to know
Via Ferrata (00 41 33 821 6100, www.klettersteig-muerren.ch)
guided tours cost about £47 per adult, £42 per child (over 10).
Getting there Swiss (0845 6010956, www.swiss.com)
flies to Zurich from £103 return.
Swiss Rail Flexi-Pass (00800 100 20030, www.myswitzerland.com/rail)
from £131.
Stay Hotel Eiger (www.hoteleiger.com)
from about £67pp; Eiger Guesthouse (www.eigerguest
house.com) from £25pp.
Further information www.myswitzerland.com
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