UKH

I’m off to Switzerland next week to climb amongst other objectives the Matterhorn. 
 

Currently the weather is looking good with sporadic light snow fall. Day 1 will be the walk into the Horlini and Day 2 ascend and descend. 

I currently have:

la sportiva Nepal's (b3) with some grivel G22 (c3) wire toe bale crampons. 
 

Scarpa mescalitos gtx approach shoes with some Simmond 12 pt basket crampons. 
 

Some super light trail/road trainers. 
 

Under the circumstances what would you do:

I don’t really understand the logic of the 'approach shoes'. Do you really want to be carrying your mountain boots on your back, in addition to all your extra mountain clothing, crampons, ice axe, water bottle, etc) on the rather long walk up to the Hornli hut and back? Particularly if it’s fine, hot weather - as it should be if you climb the mountain in suitable weather conditions.

Goes without saying that you want to be absolutely as fresh as possible for the climb, so it doesn’t seem a good idea to make the walk-in (up!) more arduous than necessary.

Personally, I’m in favour of maximum ankle support when carrying a heavy-ish sack.

None of the above

Flip flops! Light and quick drying! 😜

Unless you plan to run up to the hut, boots will be fine. Its not a long hut walk from the top frique.  Hope your already acclimatised!

I remember hearing that weight on your feet is more effort than weight on your back (presumably because you have to lift your feet on every step), so there might be a case for carrying your big boots and approaching in light shoes (assuming you don't then need to carry them on the route).I did this a few times in the days of big plastic boots which were a bit grim to walk in anyway.

Personally I would use either lightweight trainers or boots for the approach ( it is not a long walk though so boots are fine ). Then I'd use lighter B2 boots with either C2 or C1 crampons. B3 and C3 are overkill imo. Whilst perfectly doable in B3s it will be far less comfortable, bearing in mind it is a fairly long day of mostly scrambling, and will probably slow you down some. Since there is little time before you go perhaps just purchase C1 crampons to use as an alternative to your C3s.

In condition, it's mainly scrambling on rock, with some sections on snow. None of it is very technical. However how much snow there is can vary. Approach shoes with C2 crampons seems to me to be going too lightweight. How waterproof they are in practice, and how well do they perform with crampons? It may not be technically very difficult but it is a big and serious mountain, and I'd be worried about losing a crampon.  You might get away with it if conditions remain good and there's not too much snow, but what if there turns out to be more snow and ice than you expect?

On the other hand the Nepals seem overkill, and are perhaps too warm.  However if these are really all you have I would choose them over approach shoes.

For what it's worth I did it (nearly 50 years ago) in ordinary Hawkins leather walking boots (known colloquially as Hawkins Walkin's) , and strap-on Stubai crampons. These had unstiffened soles but were stiffer than approach shoes. Now I would wear B2s.

What you wear on the approach depends on whether you prefer to have comfortable feet or a light pack. 

You can laugh but one day in 1966, whilst sitting outside the Grand Mulets hut ready for a walk up Mont Blanc next day, a lad walked up - yes - in flipflops, and what looked like a pacamac, and asked, in German,"is this the way to Mont Blanc". He eventually accepted our advice and turned back - two all but barefoot crossings of the Glacier des Bossons in one afternoon! We wished him luck as we waved him goodbye!

I just did the whole lot in my B3s because that was all I had apart from running shoes. I‘d already done the Weißmies and the Nadelhorn without lifts though so I was well used to them. Day 1: Zermatt to Schwarzsee where I bivvied; day 2 a relaxed day at the hut and in the evening I rambled up the first maybe 300m of the route to learn it and get the feel of the terrain, then back to the hut. Day 3 summit and back down to Zermatt, I was lying on a deckchair in Zürich being served Fondue by the evening. Perfect trip!

Plastic boots were truly horrendous … !!

Interesting point re weight of boots on feet. But I’ve always believed (perhaps in an old-fashioned way) in lightweight leather mountaineering boots with Vibram soles on very rough terrain involving some scrambling and climbing, especially if carrying a loaded sack. My present Alt Bergs (actually the second pair now) feel almost like bedroom slippers on my feet, they’re so comfortable. I also find they’re very good for making fast descents, esp. when there’s scree etc. You can be a bit more careless because they support the ankles well, and give better braking power when needed. Also, less risk of getting small stones in the boots/shoes.

If you're alps fit, accustomed to climbing low grade rock in boots, then just wear the sportivas for everything. 

Of course Kilian Jornet did it in running shoes, but he is an extreme athlete and no doubt timed his attempt for the optimum conditions. His video shows very little snow. You may not be so lucky.

On rock and in good conditions, approach shoes are probably adequate. For me, the question is, what if I encounter snow where I have to rely on crampons? Will my crampons be sufficiently secure on approach shoes?

On average, there are around 40 rescues and 6 people die each year on the Matterhorn. It's not to be underestimated.

Seems a lot of negativity towards the idea of wearing a light weight trainer type shoe up to the hut and carrying your boots.

I think this is a great idea, I do it all the time. I'm sure it saves energy (slightly more weight overall yes, but less on you feet), makes the walk down in particular way more pleasant and helps look after your feet long term if your going to be doing this a lot.

**I haven't actually been up to the hornli hut, just commenting on it as a general strategy.**

Another advantage of trainers is you don't wear out your expensive b3s approaching on hard paths (this happens disappointingly quickly with some new boot models, although probably not an issue for Nepals).

You’re making life hard for yourself by wearing Nepals, and it’s not an approach shoe mountain, especially currently.

I’d normally walk to the hut in squishy trainers and climb it in b1 or b2 boots. I’m reviewing the Scarpa zodiac tech for UKC would be perfect. 

Sharpish 12 point crampons 

I climbed it with Nepal’s as that’s the only boots I had and everyone was wearing them at the time. If I did it again I’d take my current boots, which are the zodiac techs, but there are a lot of comfy similar C2 options. The walk to the hut is pretty short, so I wouldn’t bother with trainers, but you could I suppose.  

Yeah as others have said defo NOT the 'concrete boots' Nepals in the Alps in summer