FATMAP by Strava
The East face in all its glory

The Ultimate Alpine Trilogy: Ski the Alps' Big Three

Mont Blanc, the Eiger and the Matterhorn are the most famous mountains in Europe. Here's how to ski them all.

Ski Touring Extreme

Also in Haute-Savoie, France • Bern, Switzerland • Valais, Switzerland

MapGPX Flyover
The East face in all its glory
The East face in all its glory Photo: Roban Kramer

Description

There are many classic ski challenges in the Alps including countless hut to hut tours and a lifetime's worth of steep ski lines, but this collection of 3 routes really does represent the ultimate extreme skiing tick list. Working your way through these will require you to be an exceptional ski mountaineer with an all round mountain skill set.

The 3 most famous mountains in the Alps can all be skied (albeit not from the summit in the case of the Matterhorn) but each requires specific conditions which may not come along every season. As such, consider this list a long term project rather than a guidebook you're likely to work through in the space of a single season.

Even if it takes you a decade to get these lines done, completing them all puts you into a very elite group!

Routes included

Matterhorn East Face

Matterhorn East Face

A major extreme line on one of the World's most famous mountains

Extreme Ski Touring

Distance
3.8 km
Ascent
1.1 km
Descent
1.1 km

Mont Blanc West Face

Mont Blanc West Face

The 'Himalayan' face of Mont Blanc

Extreme Ski Touring

Distance
11 km
Ascent
154 m
Descent
3.1 km

Eiger West Flank

Eiger West Flank

One of the most sought after ski lines in the Alps on a truly legendary mountain.

Extreme Ski Touring

Distance
5.3 km
Ascent
1.6 km
Descent
1.6 km
  • •
  • •
  • •

Related guidebooks

  • •
  • •
  • •
  • •
  • •
  • •
  • •
  • •
  • •
  • •