Controversy surrounding the first ascent of Tödi 200 years ago
Published: Sunday, Sep 1st 2024, 10:20
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It was 200 years ago on September 1st that two chamois hunters climbed the highest mountain in Glarus, Tödi (3612 meters above sea level), for the first time. This first ascent triggered a controversy. It was not until 80 years later that the first ascent was proven. In the meantime, history continued to be written on the mountain: The Swiss Alpine Club (SAC) was founded and the first SAC hut was built.
Imagine you succeed in making the first ascent of an important peak and nobody believes it. This is what happened to the two chamois hunters Augustin Bisquolm and Placi Curschellas, who climbed Tödi in 1824 under the guidance of the Disentis priest Placidus a Spescha.
As proof that they were the first on Piz Russein, the highest of the three peaks of the Tödi (Sandgipfel, Glarner Tödi and Piz Russein), they wanted to build a cairn, but there were no stones. So they are said to have left a rind of bacon on the summit, explained Hansueli Rhyner from the anniversary committee of the first ascent in an interview with the Keystone-SDA news agency.
The rind quickly disappeared. Spescha, who had told the two of them which route to take and followed them to the summit with a telescope, documented the first ascent only sparsely. In a letter to Johannes Hegetschweiler, a politician and naturalist from Zurich, who had already made several attempts on Tödi at the time, he described the first ascent. However, the letter was initially not believed.
Everyone wants to be first
In fact, the competition for the first ascent of the mighty Glarus mountain triggered a veritable controversy. In addition to the team led by Father Spescha, three shepherds from Linthal GL claim to have been the first in 1834. Three years later, a father and son duo scaled the Glarus Tödi.
In 1853, a team led by Professor Melchior Ulrich claimed the first ascent of the "actual summit". In 1861, Rudolf Theodor Simler, the later founder of the SAC, made it to Piz Russein and again claimed to have been the first.
Only 80 years after the first ascent do statements by the two chamois hunters prove that they were on Piz Russein. They said that they had an almost vertical view of the Obersand Alp from the summit. They are also said to have seen nine villages and a large church in the Glarus region, as well as Lake Lucerne. A professor analyzed this information and came to the conclusion that the two could only have been on Piz Russein because of this view.
It is still not clear which route the first climbers followed. It is assumed that they climbed from the Russeintal via the Bleisasverdasfirn and the southwest flank, Rhyner continues. Today, this route is no longer used, as the Bleisasverdasfirn has practically disappeared and rocks and loose scree make the ascent difficult.
There are currently two normal routes: one in the Glarus region, via the Fridolinshütte and the Bifertenfirn, and one from the Grisons side from the Camona da Punteglias via the Porta da Gliems. Both may only be tackled by experienced alpine hikers or with a mountain guide, as the trail leads over rugged glaciers and rock.
From Spescha, Simler and Hegetschweiler
"Anyone who took on this journey 200 years ago must have been very enthusiastic," says Rhyner. The clothing and shoes were heavy back then. Nevertheless, Father Spescha also found an earlier form of crampons, touring poles and an ice axe. Today, the items are on display in a museum in Trun.
Spescha was no stranger to climbing. Several first ascents are attributed to him. Among others, he was the first to climb the Rheinwaldhorn (1789), the Oberalpstock (1793) and Piz Terri in 1801. The two first ascents of the neighboring peaks Stoc Grond (1788) and Piz Urlaun (1793) are likely to have paved the way for the later route to Piz Russein. These tours gave him a perfect view of the later route to Piz Russein, explained Rhyner.
Despite several attempts, Spescha never made it to the Tödi. When he made his first ascent in 1824, he was already over 70 years old and therefore stayed behind on the Russein Alp, from where he watched the two chamois hunters he had previously guided.
The Zurich physician Johannes Jacob Hegetschweiler tried five times. But he also failed. Today, the Hegetschweilerplatte on the Bifertenfirn is named after him.
Foundation of the SAC
During Simler's ascent in 1861, the lecturer in chemistry and geology at the University of Bern had the idea of founding the SAC. He had previously warned against leaving the then booming conquest of the Alps to foreigners alone, as the SAC writes on its website.
The first hut, the Grünhornhütte, was built on the Tödi in 1863, the year it was founded. Today you can no longer spend the night there. An hour further down is the Fridolinshütte as a replacement.
The fact that the Tödi was climbed decades before the Matterhorn (first ascent in 1865) puts the spotlight on the great achievement of the two chamois hunters. During the anniversary year, the committee is therefore presenting numerous performances. On the evening of 1 September, the Tödi is illuminated in honor of the first ascenders.
©Keystone/SDA
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