As seen in
1, Wetterhorn's east face is fairly steep and provides a straightforward snow climb. Use the standard approach from Matterhorn Creek (
2,
3) to reach the basin, southeast of Wetterhorn -
4. Pick your line and continue north/northwest (
5) to reach 12,900', near the base of the east face -
6. Since the face is prone to avalanches and gets an early sun-hit, this is a good place to pause and study the potential dangers of the face.
7,
8 and
9 show the face from various angles.
If it's a go, continue to the base of the 900-foot face and begin your climb -
10. Above 13,200', the slope angle climbs above 35 degrees (
11 and
12) and over 40 degrees between 13,300' and 13,600' -
13,
14 and
15. As you near 13,700' on the narrowing face, the angle reaches 45-48 degrees (depending on your line) and you may need to navigate through some small rock bands -
16. Climb another 150' to reach easier terrain below the summit block (
17 and
18), joining the standard, southeast ridge route.
Just left of the summit block, locate a small notch which provides access to the final pitch -
19. Climb through the notch and briefly down an angled slab. Immediately turn right to find the final pitch - 100' of Class 3 rock below the summit. The most direct way is to climb the gully that leads straight up to the summit. Another way is to climb this gully for a bit, traverse left, and follow some cairns up through the rocks to reach the northwest end of the summit. Either way, the rock is steep but relatively stable.
20 looks down on the route but shows almost all of the final pitch. Taken near 13,940',
21 shows the upper half of the pitch. From the summit,
22 looks over the area of the notch leading to the final pitch.