Switzerland · Gastlosen
Salü Jan
One of the busiest routes in the Gastlosen: homogeneous, technical climbing on beautiful fluted slabs (cannelures) that dry fast. The top third is broken by grassy ledges.
6a12 pitches380 m
Hallo Marco
Pfadflue · Gastlosen · Switzerland
Easy to bailBolting confidence: high
Six pitches of water-worn runnels and compact slab on the south face of the Pfadflue, ending on a ledge at mid-height. Pitch 4 pulls over a small overhang and pitch 5 is a delicate, holdless friction slab. You can carry on up the last five pitches of Salü Jan to the summit.
- Hardest pitch
- 6a
- Pitches
- 6
- Length
- 250 m
- Approach
- 40 min
- Aspect
- S
- South-facing
- Rope
- 2×50 m
The route
Overview
Hallo Marco is the neighbour of Salü Jan on the south face of the Pfadflue, in one of the busiest sectors of the Gastlosen. It gives six pitches up to 6a: runnels low down, then an overhang and two pitches of compact slab that are more about nerve than strength. The route stops on a ledge half-way up the face, where you either abseil or continue up the last five pitches of Salü Jan. The bolting is excellent and all belays are chained, so it works well as a first 6a multipitch on Gastlosen limestone, provided you are happy on friction.
The climbing
Pitch by pitch
5b5a5b6a6a5c
| Pitch | Grade | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| P1 | 5b | A slightly grassy slab. A 2020 party found clods of earth filling some holds. |
| P2 | 5a | Slab and runnels, then a few grassy steps. |
| P3 | 5b | A fine, fairly long pitch up runnels. |
| P4 | 6a | Pull over an overhang, one airy move, then climb a runnelled slab. |
| P5 | 6a | A compact slab on small bumps, all friction and balance. Parties call it the mental crux. Mountain Project grades it a hard 5c. |
| P6 | 5c | Another compact slab, shorter, to the ledge and a double belay. Salü Jan continues across the gully to the right. |
Getting there
Approach
To the parking
The Gastlosen chain stands between Jaun (canton Fribourg) and Abländschen/Saanen (canton Bern). For the south-east side, drive from Jaun towards Abländschen and turn left at the hairpin just before the village, or come up from Saanen, to the Col du Mittelberg. Camptocamp's access notes say the road beyond Mittelberg is closed to traffic (30 min by bike or 45 min on foot to Oberi Bire), yet parties in 2025 and 2026 still report parking at Oberi Bire, so check the signs on the day. A bus links Jaun and Saanen via Mittelberg from May to October (daily in school holidays, otherwise weekends; it ran until 26 October in 2025). Camping is not allowed at the car parks; Jaun has a campsite and a camper-van area. The Pfadflue can also be reached from the Oberberg car park (1490 m) on the Jaun side.
On foot · about 40 min
From Oberi Bire follow the well-marked path north across the hillside to a shoulder on a ridge below the south-east face of the Gross Turm, at about 1800 m. Drop into the small valley to the north and traverse its left flank to a scree slope that leads to the foot of the route; the Pfadflue is the face right of the Gross Turm, with a cross near its top. From Oberberg, climb the bank and take the path up the wooded valley heading west-south-west to the foot of the face. Allow 30 to 45 minutes. The name is painted at the base.
Map of the walk-in
- Route base
- Parking
Loading map
The point marks the base of the route.
Parking
46.56659, 7.27179
Oberi Bire (camptocamp waypoint 113903); the road beyond Mittelberg may be closed to cars
Point from Mountain Project route text (start of Hallo Marco and Salü Jan), about 200 m from camptocamp waypoint 41643 (Pfadflue)
For your phone or watch
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Contains the route point and parking. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.
Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.
Coordinates: 46.57716, 7.27521 (route base) · Parking: 46.56659, 7.27179
Getting down
Descent
Abseil the route: 30 m from belay 6 to belay 5, 45 m from belay 5 to belay 3 (under an overhang), 40 m to belay 2, then belay 1 and the ground. If you have continued up Salü Jan, follow its marked abseil line down, but cross the ledge to the Hallo Marco belay for the abseil of pitch 6 instead of abseiling from belay 7 of Salü Jan, which sends stones down the face.
Retreat
Bailing off the route
Easy to bail
Abseiling the route is the normal descent and every belay is chained and doubled, so you can retreat from any stance with two 50 m ropes. Parties regularly stop after two to four pitches and abseil off.
- Retreat from
- Any belay. The longest abseil is 45 m from belay 5 to belay 3.
- Point of no return
- None on Hallo Marco itself. If you continue up Salü Jan, the descent switches to that route's marked abseil line.
- Carry
- 2×50 m ropes.
- Basis
- Stated in the sourcesCamptocamp gives the abseil sequence and belay equipment; several trip reports describe retreating part-way.
Safety
Hazards
- The sector is one of the most popular in the Gastlosen: expect parties above and below, and stones when ropes are pulled.
- Abseiling from belay 7 of Salü Jan instead of the Hallo Marco belay is reported to guarantee stonefall.
- Pitch 5 is pure friction; a slip would be a long slide even with good bolts.
- Cows at Oberi Bire are known to scratch parked cars; camptocamp suggests parking 100 m before the car park, outside the gate.
Sun and weather
Conditions
South facing between about 1770 m and the mid-height ledge, below a 2066 m summit. It gets hot in summer and the rock dries quickly. Parties climb it from late April to late November, with a little snow on the approach at both ends of the season and short, cold days in November.
Usual season · May to Oct
JFMAMJJASOND
Sun on the wall · S-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
- January: not yet worked out
- February: not yet worked out
- March: not yet worked out
- April: not yet worked out
- May (usual season): not yet worked out
- June (usual season): not yet worked out
- July (usual season): not yet worked out
- August (usual season): not yet worked out
- September (usual season): not yet worked out
- October (usual season): not yet worked out
- November: not yet worked out
- December: not yet worked out
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Central European time), for the 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May (usual season) | Jun (usual season) | Jul (usual season) | Aug (usual season) | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | −3 | −2 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 9 | 2 | −2 |
| Mean daily low °C | −11 | −10 | −7 | −5 | −1 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 3 | −1 | −6 | −10 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 14 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 13 | 14 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 1766 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis. Temperatures are adjusted to the height of the crag; rain comes from a grid cell of about 10 to 25 km, and summer highs on sea cliffs can read a few degrees low. The wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
What to carry
Gear
2×50 m ropes and 12 quickdraws (camptocamp). Mountain Project suggests at least 16 quickdraws, some of them extendable, if you continue to the summit. No trad gear needed. Helmet.
Checklist
- Quickdraws
- 12
- Rope
- 2×50 m
- Helmet
- One each
- Abseil device and prusik
- The descent or the retreat involves abseiling
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
Reader reports
Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to Hallo Marco.
Worth knowing
Tips
- Allow about 3 hours for the six pitches; with the Salü Jan finish a 2026 party took just over 6 hours, plus 1 hour of abseils.
- The Salü Jan finish adds five pitches of 5b to 6a and takes you to the top of the Grand Pfad.
- A 2026 party found some grades in the Plaisir West guide too low and preferred the camptocamp grades used here.
Open questions
Where sources disagree
- Length: camptocamp and most guidebooks end the route at pitch 6 (about 250 m); Mountain Project describes it as 11 pitches and 364 m by adding the five upper pitches shared with Salü Jan.
- Pitch 5: 6a on camptocamp, a hard 5c on Mountain Project.
- Quickdraws: 12 on camptocamp, at least 16 on Mountain Project (for the full 11 pitches).
- Parking: camptocamp's access note says the road is closed beyond Mittelberg; trip reports from 2025 and 2026 give Oberi Bire as the car park, 30 minutes from the route.
- Mountain Project's header GPS point is far from the Gastlosen; the start coordinate in its text (46.577161, 7.275213) is the one used here.
Provenance
Sources
- Camptocamp – Pfadflue: Hallo MarcoUsed for: pitch grades, approach, abseils, bolting, gear, history
- Camptocamp – trip reports 2020–2026 (outings 1953825, 1903561, 1475732, 1358126, 1262986, 1261290)Used for: bolting comments, timings, stonefall on the abseil, season, parking
- Mountain Project – Hello MarcoUsed for: independent pitch notes, protection, quickdraws, start coordinates
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Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.