Albert-Heim Hütte
One of the finest places to spend a night in Switzerland: a grand panorama, a lake to swim in, cake, and rewarding hikes.
Over the Lochberglücke to the Albert-Heim Hut
Two days, one crossing. From the Göscheneralp the path passes the Damma glacier and climbs over the Lochberglücke (2815 m) to the hut — a T4 tour through tidy granite country: pale, rounded boulders with moss, ferns and cushions of moss campion between them, flowering pink in summer.
The hut earns its name. Albert Heim was the geologist who learned to read the Swiss Alps — and to sit up here is to sit on Aare granite in the middle of the range he described. In the evening you watch the ridges turn orange one after another from the forecourt.
Then there’s the small turquoise lake in its rock basin, where you actually can swim — briefly and with conviction, but you can. And there is cake.
On the second day you descend to Tiefenbach. If you’re feeling sporty, add the crossing to the Sidelen hut and drop from there to the Sidelenbach on the Furka.
Tip: If you want to experience the lovely hut but don’t fancy the T4, climb up from Realp instead — steep, but technically easy, in a good two and a half hours.