In August 2005, Paul and friend Marc Weisner climbed The Matterhorn.  (Due to work commitments, Fiona was unable to take the extra time off work and so joined Paul in Europe later to climb Mont Blanc.)

For this trip, they decided to use guides as they had heard that finding the route was difficult (and climbing off the route could potentially end in problems).  After spending some days hiking and climbing nearby to acclimatise, they hiked into Hörnli Hut to spend the night.  Next morning, they rose early, but after some delays with gear, ended up being the last group to leave at approximately 6am. 

The climbing was technical, reasonably exposed, and with the guides setting a relentless pace, they were constantly overtaking other groups.  After stopping for a very short break near the Solvey emergency shelter, they reached the summit at around 9am. 

Due to the steepness of the route, coming down took about the same amount of time with almost all of the route being down-climbed.  They arrived back in the hut at around midday.  After resting here for a while, they continued onto Zermatt and back to the comforts of their hotel.

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