Konkordiahütte

Konkordiahütte ; SAC hut
location	East above the Konkordiaplatz on the Aletsch Glacier ; Canton of Valais ; Valley location: Grindelwald or Fiesch
Mountain range	Bernese Alps
Geographical location:	647180 / 150 089 coordinates: 46 ° 30 '1.6 " N , 8 ° 3' 11.7" O ; CH1903: 647180 / one hundred and fifty thousand and eighty-nine
Altitude	2850 m above sea level M.
owner	SAC - Section Grindelwald
Built	1877
Construction type	hut
Usual opening times	March to May and July to the end of September
accommodation	0 beds, 155 camps
Winter room	35 bearings
Web link	Konkordiahütte
Hut directory	SAC

The Konkordiahütte (also plural Konkordiahütten ) is a mountain hut in the Bernese Alps . It is located at 2850 m above sea level. M. , about 200 meters (as of 2017) above Konkordiaplatz, the origin of the Aletsch Glacier , in the middle of the Jungfrau-Aletsch-Bietschhorn UNESCO World Heritage Site .

Geographical location

Konkordiahütte (with visible south access)

The Konkordiahütte is located in the middle of the Bernese Alps and is surrounded by numerous well-known mountains and large glacier streams. Directly to the west is Konkordiaplatz, where the Grüneggfirn , the Jungfraufirn and the Grosse Aletschfirn join to form the Great Aletsch Glacier . To the southeast lies the Gross Wannenhorn , to the east the Fiescher Gabelhorn ( 3876 m above sea level ), to the northeast, the Finsteraarhorn, the highest peak in the Bernese Alps. To the north are the four-thousand-meter peaks Grünhorn , Hinter and Gross Fiescherhorn . To the northwest follow the monk and the virgin . To the west of Konkordiaplatz lie the nearly four thousand meter high Gletscherhorn ( 3983 m above sea level ) and Äbeni Flue ( 3962 m above sea level ). In the southwest lies the glaciated Aletschhorn . To the south flows with the Aletsch Glacier, the largest glacier in the Alps, towards the Rhone Valley .

Access

The Konkordiahütte is difficult to reach. All approaches lead over glaciers and are accordingly classified as high-altitude tours ( difficulty L ).

The shortest approach is from the northwestern Jungfraujoch , which can be reached with the Jungfrau Railway from Kleine Scheidegg . From the Jungfraujoch the path leads over the Jungfraufirn to Konkordiaplatz and over this to the Hüttenfelsen. The last meters lead from the glacier over long metal stairs with a total of 467 steps (as of 2017) to the hut.

The hut is best reached from Fiesch on the southern Wallis side . The cable car takes you to the Fiescheralp ( 2212 m above sea level ), from which a path leads past the Märjelesee to the Aletsch glacier. This to the north leads to a south access to the hut, which was newly constructed in 1996 (partially secured with wire ropes).

Further very long climbs through the Lötschental or the Fieschertal are possible.

Climbing opportunities

Numerous prominent mountains, including several four-thousand-meter peaks, can be climbed from the Konkordiahütte. In summer, these are classic high-altitude tours of various degrees of difficulty, less climbing tours. For example the Gross Grünhorn over the southwest ridge ( WS + ), Aletschhorn over the Haslerrippe (ZS +), Mönch (ZS-), Jungfrau (ZS-), Äbeni Flue (L), Dreieckshorn through the east flank (WS +), Grünegg (climbing tour to III + ).

Most of the peaks can be climbed on skis in winter and spring .

Transitions

The following transitions to other huts are possible:

over the Grosse Aletschfirn to the Lötschenhütte Hollandia ( 3173 m above sea level , SAC)
through the Grünhornlücke to the Finsteraarhornhütte ( 3,048 m above sea level , SAC)
over the Great Aletsch Glacier to the Oberaletschhütte ( 2640 m above sea level , SAC)
over the Jungfraufirn to the Mönchsjochhütte ( 3657 m above sea level ,)

history

The first hut was built as early as 1877 by the central committee of the Swiss Alpine Club . The construction time was only five weeks and the "old hut" offered space for 20 people. It was well frequented, so that another hut was built in 1898. The Cathrein pavilion, built by the Fiesch hotelier Emil Cathrein, who also supported the construction of the first hut, had twelve beds and a mattress dormitory. The price for an overnight stay in a twin room was six Swiss francs .

Just ten years later, the newly founded SAC Grindelwald section built a third hut. She was supported by Gustav Hasler , a Swiss industrialist. Hasler was president of the newly established section and an enthusiastic mountaineer. The Hasler rib on the Aletschhorn is named after him. The material was brought in via the Jungfrau Railway in just five weeks, the actual assembly took place in one week. This third hut was given the nickname "Haslerhütte".

For a short time all three huts competed with each other. In 1946 the SAC Grindelwald bought the Cathrein pavilion for CHF 45,000. In 1951, 1967 and 1976 there were various conversions, enlargements and adjustments to current standards. In 1996 the hut was last rebuilt and modernized for a total of two million Swiss francs.

Approach and glacier melt

The old Konkordiahütte with a view of Konkordiaplatz (undated)

The steel stairs from the glacier to the Konkordiahütte (2002)

In 1877 the hut was built on a rock around 50 meters above the glacier. These rocks could be overcome relatively easily by a path on ledges. Due to the melting of the glaciers and the associated decline in the Aletsch Glacier, a ladder had to be installed, which was laid and extended several times. The rocks that were held together by the pressure of the glacier lost more and more of their strength and stability. Due to a further retreat of the glacier and the resulting increased risk of falling rocks, the first rock blasting took place in 1945 and the hut path was relocated. Since the 1950s, the annual decline in the glacier surface at Konkordiaplatz has been around 0.6 meters per year. In 1975 a steel staircase was installed. In 1999 370 steps had to be overcome, currently (2007) the hut is 150 meters above the glacier and can be reached via 433 steps. During the last major renovation of the hut, it was considered to change its location, as the rock on which the hut is currently located is losing more and more of its strength due to the retreat of the glacier, making the approach more and more dangerous. The hut could only remain at its current location due to increased security and fortification measures.

Todays situation

The Konkordia hut is still owned by the SAC Grindelwald section; it is managed by the hut keepers Sarah Benz and Christoph Saget. The hut is manned from March to May and from July to the end of September, as well as by appointment. It offers 155 beds, 120 of them in the main building in 10 and 12 bed rooms and 35 in the adjoining building in 8, 10 and 17 bed rooms. The adjoining house also serves as a winter room outside of maintenance times. The drinking water supply is secured by three water reservoirs with a total capacity of 70,000 liters.

With 8,600 overnight stays in 2007, the Konkordiahütte was the second most visited mountain hut of the Swiss Alpine Club after the Britanniahütte .

There is a weather station at the Konkordiahütte, here the highest speed in Europe was measured for the hurricanes Kyrill (225 km / h) and Emma (224 km / h). During hurricane Andrea in January 2012, a gust of 270 km / h was registered.

and display information about the image

View from the Konkordia hut over the Aletsch glacier . In the foreground the access stairs

Guides and maps

Karl Hausmann: Club guide Bernese Alps 4 - Tschingelhorn to Finsteraarhorn . SAC-Verlag 1997.
Ralph Schnegg / Daniel Anker: Ski touring Bernese Alps East - Hohgant to Aletschhorn . SAC publishing house 2004.
National map of Switzerland 1: 25000: Sheet 1249, Finsteraarhorn.
National map of Switzerland 1: 50000: Sheet 264S Jungfrau - Ski touring.