Chlys Öugstchummuhorn (Klein Augstkummenhorn) – south-east face · Wiwanni (Baltschiedertal) · Switzerland
Easy to bailBolting confidence: high
Eight short pitches of 4b to 5a on compact, grippy gneiss slabs above the Wiwannihütte, finishing on a 2880 m summit. Pitches 3 and 4 climb a big steep slab that is the heart of the route. Chained belays and an abseil descent make it the gentlest introduction to the Wiwanni routes, though the starting pitches feel stiff for 4b.
The route
Salamander climbs the south-east face of the Chlys (Klein) Öugstchummuhorn, the lower rock peak south-west of the Wiwannihorn. It has eight pitches between 4b and 5a, except the fifth, which is low-angled and easy; the third and fourth take a large steep slab on superb rock. The pitches are short and can all be linked in pairs with a 50 m rope. A last easy piece of ridge leads to the summit. Parties repeatedly say it is not to be underrated: the first pitch, given 4b, is often called the crux, and one party found the first two pitches nearer 5a.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| P1 | – | Given 4b. After an easy step the line trends up and left to the belay, passing bolts about 5 m left of the stance; there seem to be two starts that join shortly before the belay. Often called the hardest pitch of the route. The first stance is exposed. |
| P2 | – | Between 4b and 5a; one party thought the first two pitches were both about 5a. |
| P3 | – | The big steep slab on excellent rock. |
| P4 | – | The slab continues; pitches 3 and 4 link into one even 40 m pitch. |
| P5 | – | Low-angled and easy. The first bolt above the fifth belay is hard to see: it is on the bulge just above the stance. |
| P6 | – | Between 4b and 5a. |
| P7 | – | Between 4b and 5a. |
| P8 | – | Between 4b and 5a, to the eighth belay; an easy piece of ridge leads on to the summit. |
Getting there
Take the train to Ausserberg (Lötschberg mountain line) or drive there from Visp. From the station the hut is a 4 h 30 walk. Most people drive or take a taxi-bus up the forest road to Fuxtritt (1851 m), which saves 900 m of ascent and leaves about 1 h 30 on foot to the Wiwannihütte (2470 m). The road 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; parties report 100 CHF fines for not paying. Parking at Fuxtritt is very limited (park on the verge above the timber yard and keep the turning place clear), and camping or sleeping in vehicles is banned throughout the commune.
From the Wiwannihütte take the path north-west towards the Öugstchummuhorn, following cairns to the base of the Chlys Öugstchummuhorn. You pass below a large, obvious couloir and then reach, one step further north, a deep-cut couloir that is hidden until you are at it (the route Enzian starts here). Go up this couloir for 20 m to the start: the name is painted large in blue and the bolts are visible. Parties take between 45 minutes and 1 h 10 from the hut. Read this carefully: a 2020 party went up the wrong couloir.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
Fuxtritt, 1851 m (camptocamp waypoint 240991): end of the Ausserberg toll road, about 1 h 30 below the Wiwannihütte
Point from camptocamp waypoint 40640 (Klein/Chlys Öugstchummuhorn summit; the route finishes here). It agrees with the high point of the GPS track attached to the camptocamp route.
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: 46.34863, 7.85142 (crag) · Parking: 46.32941, 7.85531
Getting down
Two options. By abseil: camptocamp describes 8 abseils down the route with a 50 m rope, and since 2020 parties have used a newer line that starts just below the summit, away from the routes, in 7 abseils of 25 m; a 2024 party describes it as 4 abseils. The abseils end in the couloir, where stones are easily dislodged. On foot: follow the WSW ridge (a few moves of II to III, some bolts in place), then come back east to one of the two couloirs of the approach; a 2021 party who left the ridge early found steep grass and scree and did not enjoy it.
Retreat
Easy to bail
Abseiling is a normal way down and every belay is chained. The pitches are short enough that a single 50 m rope reaches from stance to stance.
Safety
Sun and weather
South-east facing, finishing at 2880 m, in the sun from early morning and all day in late August. Season roughly July to September; the hut website warns that approaches and descents can cross steep snowfields early in summer. In early July 2021 the approach was still under snow and a party used a dry spur to the right for the last 10 m; by late July 2022 the sector was snow-free.
Sun on the wall · SE-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.
Climate figures for Wiwanni (Baltschiedertal) are not available yet
What to carry
10 quickdraws and a 50 m rope; extend a few quickdraws if you link pitches. Helmet. No cams or nuts.
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 Salamander.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
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Read the cautionsCommitting
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.