Nomadic Aberration by Timothy Poulton

Nomadic Aberration by Timothy Poulton

Traveling by car from Zurich to Zermatt deep in the Swiss Alps was worth every mountainous twist and turn as the roads traversed up through vineyards and forests, delivering me to within eyeshot of the Matterhorn, one of the world’s most legendary peaks. Like the young boy sitting across from me on the short train ride from Täsch, I was in awe of this mountain that in 1865 put Zermatt on the tourist map following the first and tragic ascent of the 14,692-foot mass. “Papa,” he said, “how much longer?”
That striking scene set the mood for my photographic journey to the German-speaking canton of Valais, where skiers and snowboarders enjoy the white stuff on the glacier 365 days a year and where I embraced the sports, culture and traditions of Alpine life that blend together so naturally. At the foot of the Matterhorn — 5,300 feet above sea level — Zermatt is a classy yet unpretentious compact village of 5,800 people surrounded by the highest peaks in Switzerland – almost 15,000 feet — a paradise for mountain-climbers. If the pioneering mountaineers could only know what trails they blazed! All I needed, however, was my camera and the adventurous spirit that place like this inspires.

Timothy Poulton: Photos