A ski tour in both Switzerland and Italy. "Castore + Porta Nera"
is how it would be named in Italian. I started my day in the town of
Zermatt, and finished at the Monte Rosa hut.
scroll down for more photos

Overview of tour: Castor on horizon far left (with Pollux next), Klein Matterhorn with lift station
on far right, Breithorn the wide mass in between. Top of Schwartztor ski
run is the pass between the Pollux snow peak and black rock peak (Roccia
Nera) at the left end of the Breithorn. I took the lift up to Klein
Matterhorn, then traversed behind Breithorn, climbed Castor from behind
and skied it the same way, then skied down the Schwartztor run.

skiers from Klein Matterhorn
(Italian "Piccolo Cervino")
traversing east around the south side of the Breithorn: The two
Liskamm summits are above the smaller Pollux pyramid, and Castor is to
the right.

fast skier going past the Breithorn

west face of Pollux (4092m)
(Italian "Polluce") with
some people climbing it -- and two outside the climbing track skiing
down

skiers climbing the west face of Castor (4228m) partway, then
booting to the summit -- with three on the left summit ridge itself.
Many (including me) skied down from just below the summit, others
walked down halfway before putting skis on.

summit ridge of Castor, which I walked up and back

Schwartztor run as seen two days before from across the valley by Rotenboden

two skiers getting through the crevasses on Schwartztor (one barely visible
far right)

three "haute route" skiers from Bruxelles, Belgium getting down a section
with moguls

looking back up to north face of Pollux -- and it seems that some people ski
up the Schwartztor

Belgian skiers continuing their "haute route" to the Monte Rosa
hut -- also my destination (again). Climbing gentle on the
Gorner glacier alongside a "creek" of flowing water.
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