Climbing and skiing the Tödi, in combination with touring the Silvretta area, is as good as it gets.

The Tödi is not just the highest peak in the valley where I grow up, I also have a very special love affair with this mountain. It is the peak I used to see from the writing table in my school (where I was forced to sit still every day, for a full 7 hours). This incredible peak was right there, high up in the jagged horizon of a narrow mountain valley, 3000 vertical meters higher than the valley floor of Linthal in the valley of Glarus. It is also the peak where I became a mountaineer, ski-mountaineer and Mountain Guide.

The Glarnerland is a deep valley with rather steep side-slopes, linking the green valley-floor and the high alpine peaks. This area sits in the center of the largest snow belt of the Alps, stretching from the Gotthard to the Vorarlberg (Silvretta) in Austria. The “Glarnerland” is not famous and more likely nobody in North America has ever heard about this truly outstanding mountain valley in the Eastern Alps of Switzerlands …. except our ski guests. Why is it not famous if it is that beautiful and impressive? Well, when tourism started to expand in Switzerland, in the mid seventies, the people from Glarnerland decided to keep a more modest profile and have been against spoiling this beautiful mountain valley with lift-towers and gondola cables. Today this modest behavior has paid off. The Glarnerland became a well-liked ski-touring and alpine hiking destination.

We will start our program in the beautiful Silvretta area. These mountains form the country border in between Switzerland and Austria.

We will stay in Swiss huts (Tuoi Hütte and Silvretta Hütte) and in Austrian huts (Jamtal and Wiesbadener Hütte). We are going to experience the birthplace of the world’s most fine-tuned hospitality. These are the Austrians. They know how to take care of guests and give a service no other country gets even close to (not even Switzerland). The peaks in the Silvretta are glaciates, rugged and steep; dominated by the well known Piz Buin. The Silvretta is a true playground for ski-mountaineering. By the way, when I was 22 years of age, one out of three ski guiding exam weeks were in the Silvretta area.

During the second part of our “Tour de East Alps”, we are visiting the mountains in the Glarnerland. The goal is to climb and ski the 3614 meter high summit of the Tödi. This ski-tour is more likely amongst the three best ski-tours in the Alps. It is also considered one of the hardest ski-tours of Switzerland.

Ruedi Beglinger
I.F.M.G.A certified Mountain Guide

Detailed Program

Please call or e-mail our office to receive a hard-copy of the detailed program which includes all needed information for your ski-trip with us. For this we do need your mailing address. Unfortunately we are not able to e-mail the exact detailed program.

Insurance

We strongly recommend that you purchase the following insurances. If you have difficulties in finding the right insurances, we ask that you contact our office.

• General health / hospital insurance, good for all countries in Europe
• Life insurance
• Trip cancellation insurance
• Mountain helicopter rescue and evacuation insurance

Global Rescue:
Rescue / Medical

Guests from BC, Canada: BCAA, British Columbia Automobile Association
Rescues / Medical

Swiss Air Rescue REGA:
For Rescue in Switzerland only

Austrian Alpine Club (yes Austrian):
Need to become a member

How to get to Glarus

This will depend if you plan to acclimatize in one of the higher elevation ski resorts, such as Zermatt. You can also acclimatize in Glarus, enjoy some short ski-tours and enjoy this beautiful valley.

Acclimatize in Zermatt:
Fly from North America to Geneva, Switzerland. At the airport in Geneva go to the train station and board the train to Visp. In Visp you have to change the trains for Zermatt.

Acclimatize in Glarus:
From North America fly to International Airport Zürich, Switzerland. In the airport go down-stairs and board the train to Ziegelbrücke. In Ziegelbrücke you have to change trains for Glarus.

If you ski and acclimatize in Zermatt, prior our ski trip, take the early morning train from Zermatt via Visp – Bern – Zürich – Ziegelbrücke to Glarus.

Your Guides

Ruedi Beglinger will be your guide on this ski-trip. He has extensive experience in guiding mountaineering and skiing expeditions in Alaska, the Alps and other parts of the world. Ruedi has been certified by the Swiss (SBV) and International Guide Association (IFMGA) in 1977. He is an active and professional member of the Canadian Mountain Guide Association (ACMG) and the Canadian Avalanche Association (CAA).

Florina Beglinger will be your second guide. Florina is an ACMG ski guide and is working towards her International Mountain Guide certification.

Ability level:

This program takes place in steep and rugged high-alpine terrain, which has many crevassed glaciers, glacial seracs and other natural skiing challenges.

For this program each guest has to be an accomplished alpine skier who can ski, efficiently and safely, steep mountain slopes (as found on double Black Diamond downhill ski runs in major ski-areas of North America), in all kinds of snow conditions (powder, corn snow, breakable crust, frozen snow conditions).

Whatever snow-conditions this tour has to offer, we ask that all guests can safely and efficiently ski a fall line, linking a minimum of 30 short-radius turns. It is also important that every guest can safely control their skis in difficult terrain and can execute efficient kick-turns in steeper terrain as found in “black diamond ski runs”. It is also important that every ski guest on this program is able to side-slip on skis in terrain of steeper incline and execute efficient plow-turns.

It is important that everybody on the tour enjoys good health and has no difficulties to acclimatize to moderate or higher elevations.

Every guest has to be physically in good shape. We recommend that prior this ski trip, everybody is doing active out-door endurance sport (ski-touring, downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, biking, long distance jogging etc.). It is important that you can comfortably ski-climb with a multi-day pack of approximately 18 lbs. for an entire day of maximum 8 hours and that you can cover ski-climbs of up to 1600 vertical meters at higher elevations.

Further it is important that you are able to follow instructions given by the guide.

To ensure the quality of every ski guest on the program, we ask that every body has skied with Selkirk Mountain Experience on previous ski trips (Durrand Glacier Chalet).

If you have any questions regarding “Ability Level”, please do not hesitate to contact Selkirk Mountain Experience.

Acclimatizing and Jet-Lag

"Jet-Lag” does affect every person at a different level. One of the most known effects “Jet-Lag” has on people is the change of the internal clock but also sitting in an air-liner for such long time dehydrates travelers to a large degree.

It is difficult to acclimatize to higher elevations while suffering from any level of Jet-Lag.

With respect towards the planned program and every guest’s health and comfort on the tour, we ask all guests arrive in Switzerland a few days ahead of the starting date of your program.

A good place to acclimatize is Zermatt. Most skiing will be at 3800 meter elevation, while you sleep at 1600 meter elevation. Then on the day we meet you would board an early morning train and get a ride from Zermatt via Zürich to Glarus.

Booking and Cancellation Policy

Selkirk Mountain Experience guarantees all programs, in Canada or in Europe, regardless of the number of booked guests, unless natural disaster forces the company to cancel the program.

Booking your European tour with SME

• Because of the nature of this specialty program, Selkirk Mountain Experience Ltd. requires a non-refundable deposit of Cdn $ 1600.- in order to confirm your booking. You will then receive a confirmation with details of the program.
• A second payment of Cdn $ 1800.- will be due on December 15th.
• We ask that you pay final payment of Cdn $ 1800.- by February 1st.

Cancelation Policy

Because of the nature of this program, Selkirk Mountain Experience is not able to make exceptions to the booking and cancelation policy.

We strongly recommend that you purchase trip cancellation insurance. If you have difficulties in finding the right insurance, please contact our Revelstoke office 250-837-2381 (weekdays 09:00 hrs to 12:00 hrs)

Selkirk Mountain Experience Ltd. reserves the right to cancel any program for whatever reason. In this situation Selkirk Mountain Experience Ltd. will refund all paid program money. However, Selkirk Mountain Experience Ltd. is not responsible for any further expenses incurred in preparation for the program (airfares, pre-paid hotels etc.)

RELEASE OF LIABILITY, WAIVER OF CLAIMS, ASSUMPTION OF RISKS AND INDEMNITY AGREEMENT:

All guests who ski with Selkirk Mountain Experience Ltd. are asked to sign the form "RELEASE OF LIABILITY, WAIVER OF CLAIMS, ASSUMPTION OF RISKS AND INDEMNITY AGREEMENT ". This form is attached to this Program information letter and we ask you to read and sign it and send it back to our office. If you have any questions please feel free to phone or email us our office in Revelstoke.