SummitPost.org

Hi everybody.
Me and a friend are going to climb Mont Blanc, Matterhorn and Eiger here in July. But I’m having a hard time finding some reliable GPS waypoints for the routes we are planning to do. So I’m hoping with all the mountaineering experience collected in here, that there would be someone who knows where I can find these, or maybe already have the waypoints themselves that they could post here?
The routes are as following:

Mont Blanc – 3 Mounts Traverse

Matterhorn – Hörnligrath

Eiger – Mittellegi Ridge

better carry some more water or food than a GPS, it's really hard to loose the routes there
PS : no radars or speed meters on the routes

JesperMF wrote:Hi everybody.
Me and a friend are going to climb Mont Blanc, Matterhorn and Eiger here in July. But I’m having a hard time finding some reliable GPS waypoints for the routes we are planning to do. So I’m hoping with all the mountaineering experience collected in here, that there would be someone who knows where I can find these, or maybe already have the waypoints themselves that they could post here?
The routes are as following:

Mont Blanc – 3 Mounts Traverse
Matterhorn – Hörnligrath
Eiger – Mittellegi Ridge

The waypoints can not replace the experience of mountaineering. If you're enough experienced you don't need all this technology. It's just an opinion.

THANKS!

Your replies have been so helpful, what a great way to make new members fell welcome.

I agree, that no electronic gadget can replace actual mountaineering experience. But I like to have everything planned/prepared before I go on a trip. And for me that involves finding waypoints for the GPS. Maybe I’m not going to use them, but this I won’t know before I’m on the actual route.

JesperMF wrote:THANKS!

Your replies have been so helpful, what a great way to make new members fell welcome.

I agree, that no electronic gadget can replace actual mountaineering experience. But I like to have everything planned/prepared before I go on a trip. And for me that involves finding waypoints for the GPS. Maybe I’m not going to use them, but this I won’t know before I’m on the actual route.

Don't mind them. I'm always amazed at the armchair mountaineers that are so willing to impugn the experience of people they haven't even met.

JesperMF wrote:THANKS! Your replies have been so helpful, what a great way to make new members fell welcome.

Welcome. Now is better ?

JesperMF wrote:THANKS!

Your replies have been so helpful, what a great way to make new members fell welcome.

I agree, that no electronic gadget can replace actual mountaineering experience. But I like to have everything planned/prepared before I go on a trip. And for me that involves finding waypoints for the GPS. Maybe I’m not going to use them, but this I won’t know before I’m on the actual route.

Jesper, I've also been looking for free GPS' maps and couldn't find any. Then do not forget printed maps, they're useful as the mountaineering experience that Mihai says.

¡Bienvenido a SP

Having done 2 of the routes and a third of the first you mention, I can verify that for most part GPS is not necessarily very useful. On the Mittellegi it depends on which way you will descend, if GPS would have any use, as the western flank is confusing and in poor visibility (often the case) it might be helpful. The ridge itself is VERY straightforward, as is the Hörnli (follow the crowd...).

If you decide to input waypoints based on a Swiss topo, bear in mind that Swiss maps use Swiss grid (not UTM) and are based on the CH-1902 datum, not WGS 84, so you have to reset your GPS accordingly.

Since Swiss maps are copyrighted, you won't find much that is free and remotely useful. Swisstopo does sell software, but not sure if any of it is uploadable into a GPS unit.

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BTW, calling Gabriele an armchair mountaineer is totally unwarranted and absurd.

thanks Moni, but let him think what he likes

Moni wrote:...BTW, calling Gabriele an armchair mountaineer is totally unwarranted and absurd.

When I write an answer on SP I am a proud armchair mountaineer. As Gabriele, you, Moni, Diego, The Chief, Damien,, etc, etc.

I still don't used my crampons on the sofa Mihai

Diego Sahagún wrote:I still don't used my crampons on the sofa Mihai

of course, your sofa's steepness is less than 20°

Diego Sahagún wrote:I still don't used my crampons on the sofa Mihai

I can teach a special technique if needed

gabriele wrote:

Diego Sahagún wrote:I still don't used my crampons on the sofa Mihai

of course, your sofa's steepness is less than 20°

I suppose he use a special crampon in that case