Gross Öugstchummuhorn (Gross Augstkummenhorn) · Wiwanni (Baltschiedertal) · Switzerland
Easy to bailBolting confidence: high
The only route that finishes directly on the 2924 m summit of the Gross Öugstchummuhorn. Structured slabs lead to an awkward chimney low down and two short, steep crux pitches of 5b+ and 5b near the top. The rock is solid but rounded, so you climb on your feet; the summit view of the Bietschhorn is the reward.
The route
Silbermantel is a direct line to the summit of the Gross Öugstchummuhorn, mostly on slabs with some crack and corner climbing. The first four or five pitches are grade 3 to 5a and the last three are the best: a vertical slab and corner at 5b+, a delicate traversing slab at 5b and an easier finish. It was rebolted in 2017 and every recent report praises the equipment. You can abseil the line on two ropes, which most parties find easier than the ridge traverse to the neighbouring abseil piste.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 3b | 15 m | Easy steps, slippery when damp. If snow makes the first stance awkward, gear up at the first belay. |
| P2 | 5a | 30 m | An awkward chimney, worse if you are tall, then a wall and a slab. Some find this the hardest move on the route. |
| P3 | 4c | 35 m | Slab. |
| P4 | 4c | – | A short easy pitch that the camptocamp table leaves out; the hut topo and two 2024 parties count it. |
| P5 | 4b | 25 m | Slab. |
| P6 | 5b+ | 20 m | Vertical slab followed by a corner. |
| P7 | 5b | 25 m | Delicate slab that starts with a traverse. One 2024 party found this harder than the 5b+. |
| P8 | 4b | 25 m | Short walls and slab with a few loose stones, then a few metres of ridge to the summit book. |
Getting there
Take the train to Ausserberg on the Lötschberg mountain line, or drive up from Visp. From the station the Wiwannihütte (2470 m) is a 4 h 30 walk. Most parties drive or take a taxi-bus (Taxi Zerzuben in Visp, or Taxi Yvonne in Ausserberg for small groups) up the forest road to Fuxtritt (1851 m), which saves 900 m of ascent and leaves about 1 h 30 on foot to the hut. The road beyond the village needs a permit: 5 CHF for the first day and 3 CHF for each further day, from the village shop, the parking machine in the upper village, or by app. Park on the verge above the timber yard at Fuxtritt and keep the turning place clear; a July 2026 party found the top parking closed for forestry work and parked lower. Camping and sleeping in vehicles are banned throughout the commune.
About 1 h from the Wiwannihütte. Go north-west on the path, then over scree to a small lake, and turn well west to the foot of the walls. Silbermantel is the second route from the right and starts on the right of an enormous greenish slab-block lying below the big corners; the name is painted in faded blue. There are two lines of big corners on the face and parties have hesitated between them: the route is in the left-hand one. A steep snow patch often lies below the start.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
Fuxtritt, 1851 m, end of the permit road above Ausserberg (camptocamp waypoint 240991)
Point from camptocamp waypoint 466688 (Gross Öugstchummuhorn summit)
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: 46.35023, 7.85110 (crag) · Parking: 46.32941, 7.85531
Getting down
Abseil the route: every belay is rigged and parties in 2019 and 2021 report it goes well; with two 60 m ropes it takes four abseils. The alternative recommended by the hut is to follow the ridge west to the top of Männertreu? and make five 25 m abseils, but a 2021 party turned back from that ridge as too committing. Confident ridge climbers can also traverse the crest to the Klein Öugstchummuhorn (grade III at most, bolts on the delicate steps) and walk down, or go east towards the Wiwannihorn col and its two 20 m abseils.
Retreat
Easy to bail
Abseiling the route is a normal descent: all belays are linked and rigged with rings, and parties in 2019 and 2021 abseiled it without trouble. You need two ropes to do it.
Safety
Sun and weather
Faces roughly east at 2750 to 2924 m; the sun leaves the route at about 14:30 in summer and a September party climbed mostly in shade. A snow patch sits below the start into late July in some years; parties passed it without crampons by kicking steps. The hut warns that the steep slopes below the starts can hold snow at the beginning of summer.
Sun on the wall · E-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
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 | Jun | Jul (usual season) | Aug (usual season) | Sep (usual season) | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | −8 | −7 | −3 | −0 | 4 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 8 | 4 | −3 | −8 |
| Mean daily low °C | −15 | −14 | −11 | −7 | −3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | −1 | −5 | −10 | −14 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 12 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 13 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 2454 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
12 quickdraws. Two 50 m ropes if you abseil the route; the hut lists a single 50 m rope, which commits you to the ridge and the 25 m abseils of Männertreu?. Helmet. Good boots for the scree approach.
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
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 Silbermantel.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
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Read the cautions
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.