Zumsteinspitze

Height
 4,563 m

First ascent
 1 August 1820

First climbed by
 Joseph and Johann Nikolaus Vincent, Joseph Zumstein, Joseph Beck, H. Molinatti, Marty and Castel

Tips in the village

• Zermatlantis, the Matterhorn Museum: reliefs and photos
• Hotel Monte Rosa, guided tours
• Mountaineers’ cemetery

Tips for visitors

• Best view of the Zumsteinspitze: from the Gornergrat (cog railway)

Tips for hikers

• High-altitude hike to the Monte Rosa hut (glacier trek, mountain guide required)
• Rotenboden - Riffelberg

Zumsteinspitze: tips for mountaineers

• Mountain guide necessary
• Depending on fitness levels, suitable for single or multiple ascents in the Monte Rosa massif
• Multi-day tour
• Medium difficulty

Early topographical exploration of the Monte Rosa massif
 The Zumsteinspitze (4,563 m) is the third-highest peak in the Monte Rosa massif, located on the border between Italy and Switzerland. It lies between the Dufourspitze and the Signalkuppe, separated by the Grenzsattel (4,453 m) and the Colle Gnifetti (4,453 m). It was first climbed very early in the history of alpinism, for scientific reasons, at a time when the Monte Rosa massif was still completely unknown.

Origin of name   
 Ludwig Freiherr von Welden, the Austrian general and topographer, named the peak after Joseph Zumstein, who completed the first ascent in summer 1820 in the name of scientific research. The two explorers worked together on the mapping of the Monte Rosa massif.

Protection order for the Monte Rosa ibex
 It is likely that ibex on the Monte Rosa massif would now be history had not the draper, natural scientist and forestry inspector Joseph Zumstein from the Val de Gressoney made the House of Savoy aware of the dwindling numbers of these impressive creatures. A protection order, the Patenti, was issued on 21 September 1821.