UKC

Hi UKC collective,

Please could you suggest a good acclimatisation peak/ venue around Wengen/ Grindlewald/ Lauterbrunnen.

I'm looking for an enjoyable, easy 3000m peak to trek up/ camp in the area before we head onto something bigger.

Thanks

Not to far away, you could use Sustenhorn - 800m height gain to the hut, 800m to the summit at 3500m.

There is a via ferreta opposite side of the valley, lots of ladders but great view at the top 

I remember doing something called Dossen, which had a nice hut and was pretty good really. 

To be honest if you're taking the train up, staying at the hut etc.. then you could treat the hill itself as acclimatisation for other routes later in the trip, it's less than 700m ascent, if you're fit already, just take it very slow and the day / night at the hut will help too. It will give you more time for other things. Obviously we all acclimatise differently. 

I've only spent one night at the Mönchsjochhütte but I don't think I've ever seen so many people suffering from altitude. I was OK as I'd been ski touring elsewhere not long before but many had arrived by train with no previous acclimatisation & really suffered. If the OP is planning to go to the Mönchsjochhütte (which is at something like 3600m) I'd strongly recommend getting some acclimatisation elsewhere first.

Doing this is really asking for trouble unless the OP knows from past experience at altitude that they would cope. Could end up a very expensive way of having a very miserable time or worse.

Curious, because I had the complete opposite experience, slight headache, harder work going up to 4000m of course, but nothing horrendous. Even the walk around to the hut is near flat. As I said, we all acclimatise differently and it is a lottery to some degree. 

A different option- a few years ago, we trekked up the Aletsch glacier from Fiesch, staying at the Koncordia hut overnight, which was a stunning location. There are a few peaks you can do from there if you want. Second day we went up to Monchsjoch hut.

The crevasses in the top section were ‘interesting’ so worth checking first

Piz Gloria?

look out for the armed guards though.

it is a little short (30m) of 3000 ft but the trek up from Murren will hit the unacclimatised.

If you want to bumble around at 3000m take the cablecar/train from Lauterbrunnen to Murren (~30 mins). From there you can walk up to 3000m at Piz Gloria which has a nice revolving restaurant and James Bond Museum. Quite a tiring walk btw, 1,200m elevation and it hits you if you're coming in from sea level or not 100% fit. The via ferrata at 1800m in Murren is a good one if you like that sort of thing.

The other cracking walk in the area is from Stechelberg to Obersteinberg. Stechelberg is a short bus ride from Lauterbrunnen. 1000m gain to Obersteinberg, which is an off grid hotel at 1800m. 

If your objectives are Oberland 4000m peaks, you could consider walking to the Konkordiahutte instead? Amazing location, nice hut (nicer than Monchjochhutte) and you can do the Grunegghorn / Grunhorn which is nearby. There is some sport climbing behind the hut.

Be aware that the conditions on the Jungfrau have changed since Les Swindin's book was published and you need to be a little careful now on the saddle section (you probably know this). Definitely worth starting from the Monchsjochhutte to get an early start - by the time we got down to the bottom we saw people still coming off the train and getting started during the heat of late morning, which is completely mad. Particularly as a couple of days later a whole section fell down at around 1400.

A little higher than you asked but the Wetterhorn (3700m) from the Gleckstein but is worth considering.

Also there the Tschinglehorn above Lauterbrunennen

(Coolidge's dog was named after this peak)

Fitness is irrelevant to whether you get sick. Also altitude sickness tends to take 6+ hrs to develop so it's likely a night at too a high altitude will make things worse, not better.