Hohberghorn
4,218 m
Switzerland
Also known as Hobärghorn, ჰობეგჰორნი, +1Also known as
Hobärghorn · ჰობეგჰორნი · Хёбергхорн
- Elevation
- 4,218 m
- Prominence
- 76 m
- Difficulty
- 6/10
- Alpine climb
- Best Season
- Jul–Aug
- Routes
- 2
Routes
2Sources differ: AD- (Camptocamp (Nadelhorn–Stecknadelhorn section))
A subsidiary summit of the Nadelgrat, normally reached as an extension of the Nadelhorn normal route from the Mischabelhütte: glacier to the Windjoch, the NE ridge to about 4,200 m, a 45° traverse under the gendarme to the Stecknadelhorn, then down a rock ridge to the Hohbergjoch and up an easy snow ridge to the rounded summit. Return the same way.
Elevation Profile
approximate line- Distance
- 8.1 km
- one way
- Ascent
- +2,153 m
- −273 m lost on the way up
- High Point
- 4,325 m
- Time Up
- 8h 44m
- DIN 33466
- Time Down
- 6h 14m
- DIN 33466 · same way back
Day one: from Saas-Fee take the Hannig gondola (2,336 m) and walk about 3 hours to the Mischabelhütte (3,340 m), the last part on a rocky ridge with cables, pegs and ladders. Day two: leave around 04:00 and follow the Nadelhorn normal route across the Hohbalmgletscher (crevasses run along the line of travel) to the Windjoch (3,845 m), then up the corniced NE ridge to about 4,200–4,250 m. Traverse west under the gendarme between the Nadelhorn and the Stecknadelhorn on a north-facing slope of up to 45°, often icy and best protected with ice screws, regain the snow crest and climb the short rock block of the Stecknadelhorn (4,240 m). From the Stecknadelhorn descend the rock ridge, loose but not difficult and mostly on the south-west side, to the Hohbergjoch (about 4,142 m), then follow the easy snow ridge to the Hohberghorn (4,219 m), a rounded snow pyramid with a small summit platform. Return the same way over the Stecknadelhorn and down the Nadelhorn ridge to the Windjoch and the hut, or continue along the Nadelgrat over the Dirrujoch and Dirruhorn to the Galenjoch and the Bordierhütte. A snow couloir of about PD from the Hohbergjoch down the west side towards the Dom normal route is a possible escape.
Start
Hannig2,338 m
- Saas-Fee–Hannig gondola (summer)
- Train to Visp, PostBus to Saas-Fee, then the Hannig gondola.
Stages
| Day | Stage | km | m ascent | m descent | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hannig → Mischabelhütte | 4.2 | 1,049 | 59 | 4h 08m |
| 2 | Mischabelhütte → Hohberghorn | 4.0 | 1,103 | 214 | 4h 36m |
Waypoints
- Lift: Hannig2,338 m
Top station of the Saas-Fee–Hannig gondola
- Hut: Mischabelhütte3,336 m
- Col: Windjoch3,848 m
- Crux: Nadelhorn NE ridge traverse4,328 m
Leave the NE ridge at about 4,200–4,250 m and traverse west under the gendarme (45°)
- Shoulder: Stecknadelhorn4,240 m
- Col: Hohbergjoch4,141 m
- Summit: Hohberghorn4,218 m
Key Passages
- Cabled ridge to the Mischabelhütte
- Crevassed Hohbalmgletscher and the Windjoch slope
- Corniced NE ridge of the Nadelhorn
- 45° traverse under the Nadelhorn gendarme
- Loose rock ridge from the Stecknadelhorn to the Hohbergjoch
- Snow ridge to the Hohberghorn
Equipment
0/11 packedDownloads
Route confidence 70%Overview
A rounded 4,218 m snow pyramid at the northern end of the Nadelgrat, between the Stecknadelhorn and the Dirruhorn. It is usually climbed as part of the Nadelgrat or as an out-and-back extension of the Nadelhorn normal route from the Mischabelhütte, at about AD.
The Hohberghorn rises above the Hohberggletscher on the west and the Riedgletscher on the north, on the Nadelgrat ridge of the Mischabel group between Saas-Fee and the Mattertal. Seen from the Riedgletscher it is a broad, more rounded snow pyramid than its neighbours, with a narrow summit platform. With 76 m of prominence above the Hohbergjoch (about 4,142 m) it counts as one of the official Alpine 4,000 m summits.
There is no short independent route. From the Saas side, parties follow the Nadelhorn normal route from the Mischabelhütte to about 4,200 m, cross the often icy 45° traverse to the Stecknadelhorn, then descend a loose rock ridge to the Hohbergjoch and climb an easy snow ridge to the top, returning the same way. From the north, the Nadelgrat traverse from the Bordierhütte reaches it over the Galenjoch and the Dirruhorn, with UIAA III rock and a crumbly mixed buttress below the summit.
Either way it is a long day above 3,800 m on glaciers, corniced ridges and loose Valais rock. It is rarely the only objective: most climbers combine it with the Stecknadelhorn and Nadelhorn, or do the whole Nadelgrat.
Climbing Notes
You need to be comfortable on crevassed glaciers, corniced snow ridges, 45° ice traverses with screws, and loose rock up to UIAA III if coming from the north, and fit enough for 9–12 hours at 3,800–4,300 m. Acclimatise beforehand with nights at altitude and a lower 4,000 m peak (the Allalinhorn or Weissmies from Saas-Fee are common choices).
Typical itinerary from Saas-Fee: Hannig gondola and about 3 hours to the Mischabelhütte; next day a 04:00 start, the Nadelhorn normal route to the Windjoch and up the ridge, across to the Stecknadelhorn and on to the Hohberghorn, then back the same way (adding the Nadelhorn summit on the return is common). The full Nadelgrat from the Bordierhütte is a longer, more varied alternative that ends at the Mischabelhütte. Many parties hire a guide; book huts in advance.
History
First ascent in August 1869 by R. B. Heathcote with the guides Franz Biner, Peter Perren and Peter Taugwalder, by the west couloir above the Hohberggletscher to the col between the Hohberghorn and the Stecknadelhorn, then along the ridge to the summit.
Season
Best Jul–Aug- January: Not advisable
- February: Not advisable
- March: Not advisable
- April: Possible
- May: Possible
- June: Good
- July: Best (best window)
- August: Best (best window)
- September: Good
- October: Not advisable
- November: Not advisable
- December: Not advisable
- Jan
- Winter; huts unstaffed
- Feb
- Winter
- Mar
- Winter; ski mountaineering only for experts
- Apr
- Spring ski-mountaineering conditions; huts mostly unstaffed
- May
- Spring snow; hut paths may be snowbound
- Jun
- Huts open in June; good snow on the ridges
- Jul
- Main season
- Aug
- Main season; traverses icier and rock looser late in summer
- Sep
- Huts close mid-September
- Oct
- Huts closed; early winter
- Nov
- Winter
- Dec
- Winter
Access & Permits
- Hut Booking
- Mischabelhütte: online via hut-reservation.org (until 18:00 the day before), +41 27 957 13 17, mischabelhuette@gmx.ch. Bordierhütte: online via alpsonline.org.
- Fees
- Mischabelhütte: overnight CHF 43–55 (SAC member/non-member), half board extra
- Saas-Fee–Hannig gondola ticket
- Bordierhütte: CHF 50 per person per night charged for cancellations less than 48 hours ahead
- Rules
- Bordierhütte: reservation required; no overnight stays without a booking; bring a hut sleeping bag
- The Mischabelhütte access path has exposed sections with cables and iron pegs
- Getting There
Saas-Fee (Mischabelhütte side); St. Niklaus/Gasenried (Bordierhütte side)
Geneva (GVA), Zurich (ZRH) or Milan Malpensa (MXP)
- Train to Visp, then PostBus to Saas-Fee; Hannig gondola, then about 3 hours to the Mischabelhütte
- Train to St. Niklaus, PostBus to Gasenried, then about 3.75 hours to the Bordierhütte
Hazards
- Glacier
- Crevasses
- Altitude
- Exposure
- Cornices
- Rockfall
- Weather
Huts & Shelters
2- 2,886 m
BordierhütteHutStaffedBooking required
44 beds · Mid-June to mid-September (2026: 12 June – 11 September)
- 3,340 m
MischabelhütteHutStaffedBooking required
100 beds · Summer; 2026 season 5 June – 13 September