Matterhorn Mountain Guide Club

The Matterhorn Mountain Guide Club (Société des guides du Cervin / Società delle guide del Cervino) is a professional association of mountain guides and mountain leaders headquartered in Breuil-Cervinia, in the Valtournenche valley of the Aosta Valley, Italy. Its primary vocation is the accompaniment of clients in high mountain terrain, essentially on the Italian side of the Matterhorn (Monte Cervino). The organisation traces its origins to the group of Valtournenche guides who achieved the first Italian ascent of the Matterhorn on 17 July 1865, led by Jean-Antoine Carrel together with Jean-Baptiste Bich, Jean-Augustin Meynet and Amé Gorret. The society was formally created on that same date. The club is both a professional body and a custodian of alpine heritage. It owns and manages a network of mountain huts and bivouacs in the high Valtournenche around Breuil, including the Refuge Guides du Cervin, Refuge Jean-Antoine Carrel, Refuge Perucca-Vuillermoz, Refuge Laura Florio, Refuge Giorgio et Renzo Novella, and the bivouacs Camillotto-Pellissier, Enzo et Nino Benedetti, Oreste Bossi, Paoluccio, Paolo Perelli Cippo and Renzo Rivolta. In 2013 it counted approximately forty members. Beyond the Matterhorn, the society's guides have undertaken expeditions in the Himalaya, Nepal, Patagonia, Africa and Alaska. The tradition of Breuil alpine guiding extends from Carrel's early ascents in South America — including the first ascent of Chimborazo — through the mid-twentieth century, when the patronage of Guido Monzino supported the club's activities in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. On 13 August 2012 the Musée des Guides du Cervin was inaugurated next to the guides' office in Breuil-Cervinia. Dedicated to trekking and alpinism, the museum is associated with the Cabane Louis-Amédée de Savoie. The club remains an active institution in the Italian Alps, offering guided ascents and maintaining the infrastructure that supports mountaineering on the Italian side of the Matterhorn.

The Matterhorn Mountain Guide Club, known in French as the Société des guides du Cervin and in Italian as the Società delle guide del Cervino, is a professional association of alpine guides and mountain leaders based in Breuil-Cervinia, in the Valtournenche valley of the Aosta Valley, Italy. Its main purpose is the accompaniment of clients in high mountain terrain, essentially on the Italian side of the Matterhorn. The society was created on 17 July 1865, following the Italian conquest of the Matterhorn by the Valtournenche guides Jean-Antoine Carrel, Jean-Baptiste Bich, Jean-Augustin Meynet and Amé Gorret. This event marked the first Italian ascent of the mountain and provided the founding impetus for the organisation. The tradition of Breuil alpine guiding predates the society's formal creation and extends back to the earliest ascents made by Jean-Antoine Carrel in South America, among which is the first ascent of Chimborazo. This tradition continued through the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, supported by the patronage of Guido Monzino, which helped sustain the club's activities during that period. Over time, the society's guides have carried out ascents not only in the Alps but also in the Himalaya, Nepal, Patagonia, Africa and Alaska, extending the club's reach well beyond its home range. In 2013 the society counted approximately forty members. The club also owns and manages a significant network of refuges and bivouacs, all located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche. These include the Refuge Guides du Cervin, the Refuge Jean-Antoine Carrel, the Refuge Perucca-Vuillermoz, the Refuge Laura Florio, the Refuge Giorgio et Renzo Novella, and the bivouacs Camillotto-Pellissier, Enzo et Nino Benedetti, Oreste Bossi, Paoluccio, Paolo Perelli Cippo and Renzo Rivolta. On 13 August 2012, the Musée des Guides du Cervin was inaugurated next to the guides' office in Breuil-Cervinia. Dedicated to trekking and alpinism, the museum is associated with the Cabane Louis-Amédée de Savoie. The museum serves as a repository of the club's history and of the broader alpine guiding tradition of the region.

• 2013

  The society counted approximately forty members.

• 2012

  Inauguration of the Musée des Guides du Cervin next to the guides' office in Breuil-Cervinia.

• 1865

  Creation of the Société des guides du Cervin following the first Italian ascent of the Matterhorn by Jean-Antoine Carrel, Jean-Baptiste Bich, Jean-Augustin Meynet and Amé Gorret.

A historic, member-based association of professional alpine guides rooted in the Italian Matterhorn tradition, combining guiding services with the stewardship of high-mountain refuges and alpine heritage.

• Guided high-mountain ascents

  Accompaniment of clients in high mountain terrain, essentially on the Italian side of the Matterhorn.

• Refuge Guides du Cervin

  Mountain hut owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Refuge Jean-Antoine Carrel

  Mountain hut owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Refuge Perucca-Vuillermoz

  Mountain hut owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Refuge Laura Florio

  Mountain hut owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Refuge Giorgio et Renzo Novella

  Mountain hut owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Bivouac Camillotto-Pellissier

  Bivouac owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Bivouac Enzo et Nino Benedetti

  Bivouac owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Bivouac Oreste Bossi

  Bivouac owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Bivouac Paoluccio

  Bivouac owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Bivouac Paolo Perelli Cippo

  Bivouac owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Bivouac Renzo Rivolta

  Bivouac owned and managed by the society, located around Breuil in the upper Valtournenche.

• Musée des Guides du Cervin

  Museum dedicated to trekking and alpinism, inaugurated on 13 August 2012 next to the guides' office in Breuil-Cervinia, associated with the Cabane Louis-Amédée de Savoie.

1. 1Wikidata: Matterhorn Mountain Guide Clubwikidata.org
2. 2Société des guides du Cervin — Wikipédiafr.wikipedia.org
3. 3Site officiel de la Société des guides du Cervinguidedelcervino.com