The Swiss city of Zermatt celebrated the 150th anniversary of the first ascent of the Matterhorn on 13 July by lighting up the route taken by the first explorers on their quest to conquer the mighty mountain.
On 14 July 1865, British climber Edward Whymper and Zermatt mountain guides climbed to the peak of the Matterhorn, which stands at 4,478m in the Swiss Alps on the border of Switzerland and Italy.
Four of the seven mountaineers fell to their deaths during the trip. This first ascent is closely linked to the birth of alpinism and the resultant rise of tourism in the Alps.
150 years later, Zermatt is honouring the alpinists and celebrating the mountain with several summer events and by lighting up the Hoerneli ridge, the route used by the climbers, with solar-powered lights.
All of the lights were white with the exception of one red light to mark the place where four climbers of the first ascent fell. The environmentally friendly lights were placed on the Matterhorn at the beginning of summer and will be taken down at the end of the season.
Whympers team received a memorial stone with their names, which will be laid on Zermatts main street the Bahnhofstrasse, with a ceremony on the Matterhorn summit on 17 July.
on their quest to conquer the mighty mountain
