Category Archives: Alps & Other Big Mountains

Springtime ride on the Glacier Express

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Post by Lauren

You may recall from the blog we took the Glacier Express to St. Moritz this winter.   When we took it while Gabe’s family was here, it was equally as beautiful only half covered in snow.

This time, instead of St. Moritz, we headed to winter sports capital, Davos.  We passed through in route to Klosters, which was the choice vacation getaway for Princess Di and family.  You see, I figured I’d class up the selection and provide us the lodging of royalty.  Just kidding, it was the only hotel in the entire region left since it was still ski season.  And I can promise you that they didn’t stay in the Swiss Sport Lodge, although it was fine for our tastes 🙂

You can see a pictorial recap of our journey below:

Starting out in Zermatt and heading to Brig. Not much snow at all this time!  We love watching the wonder on everyone’s faces!

Continuing on through Fiesch, Reckingen, Muster, Fulka and the canton of Ori.
Everyone in awe in Andermatt. It’s my favorite on the ride, too!

Cutting through the Rhine Gorge, passing through Davos and reaching our destination of Klosters.

Enjoying their first Swiss fondue and raclette in Klosters. Since the raclette was Type 2 and served without meat, the group favorite was the mushroom fondue. We were the only ones in the restaurant with an exclusively German-speaking owner.   It was a really awkward fun experience!

We stayed at the Swiss Sport hotel in Klosters. We found Klosters to be small and tranquil – not a place for late night action.  We had to create our own!  The evening was fun of laughter and fun.  Don’t let The French Cougar tell you that is water in her hand – we believe its wine!   Also don’t even ask why Dunkel and Sweet Wine have those amused looks on their faces.  What happens in Klosters stays in Klosters!

A bonus is that The Gladiator and Mama Mia celebrated their wedding anniversary on this stint of the trip.   We are so glad we got to spend it with them!

Finally….The Matterhorn!

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Post by Lauren

This post is dedicated to Pascal and Gisele.

You might remember that we visited Zermatt before, but failed at catching a glimpse of the Matterhorn.

So when Gabe’s family put this iconic  mountain on the top of their Swiss wish list, we were excited at the thought we might actually get to see it.

We anxiously watched the weather forecast hoping for clear skies.  And…mission accomplished!

We stayed in nearby Tasch, the town where we had parked the car on our last visit.  Tasch has trains to Zermatt every 20 minutes, providing a less expensive hotel option (150 CHF vs. an average of 500 CHF ) since it was still skiing high season in Zermatt.

After dropping bags at adorable Hotel City in Tasch, we headed to Zermatt and immediately took an electric taxi  to the best overlook.  It was quite bright, but still magnificent.

Zermatt is known as a climbers destination although the Matterhorn is one of the deadliest peaks in the Alps.  It was one of the last peaks to be climbed in the golden age of Alpinism, and was first conquered by a group lead by  Edward Whymper in 1865.  Unfortunately, on the descent, there was a fall and four members of the group fell to their deaths.

We passed the graveyard for those who have died attempting to climb the Matterhorn.  It has been about 500 people in total who found their match in the 4,478 m high peak. For more information on this topic, Schwingen in Switzerland did a comprehensive post.

Mountaineer's cemetery, Zermatt

After wandering the town a bit, we dined on burgers and beers at Zermatt favorite, Brown Cow at Hotel Post, and then headed back to our own hotel in Tasch for the evening.

The next morning, we got up bright and early to make sure we were on time for the Glacier Express. We had an extra half hour to kill, so a few of us ventured back to catch a morning glimpse of the majestic Matterhorn.  Much better by morning:

Zermatt still remains one of our favorite Swiss towns.  We have visited it now in winter and spring.  However, I think it would be beautiful in the summer and fall as well.

Gratitude Friday: Four Hours

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Post by Lauren

When we lived in North Carolina and Georgia, we could get to some pretty amazing places in four hours.  In that time, we could visit family in Virginia, check out North Georgia apple orchards, visit some vineyards and catch some NC mountain action.

However, here in Geneva, in four hours driving time, we can find ourselves what seems to be a world away.   We realized this even more when Gabe’s family was here and we did a lot of day trips.  Here are a few examples:

A 3.5 hour train ride or drive can put you in Zermatt, home of the Matterhorn. Just cross your fingers for visibility!

A 4-ish hour drive can put you in the 2nd smallest principality in the world: jet setting luxurious Monaco.

A 3.5 hour drive puts you near Nîmes where you can find evidence of the Roman times - the Pont du Gard aqueduct built in 19 BC and a UNESCO world heritage site.

A 4 hour train ride can put you in the heart of Andermatt where you'll feel like you are in a snow globe....even in April!

A 4ish hour ride can take you to the South of France to gaze on the magnificent cliffs overlooking Cassis.

A 3.5 hour drive can put you in the heart of Arles, France where you can find yourself in the middle of a Van Gogh scene.

A 4-ish hour drive can take you to Nice where you can walk along the beautiful Promenade d'Anglais and watch the sunset.

A four hour train can take you to Milan where you can eat your fill of pasta, gelato and experience the liveliness of Italy alongside of appreciating The Duomo & The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci.

A four hour ride can have you in Cannes where the famous film festival takes place each May.

Look for posts in the coming days on each of these places we visited with Gabe’s family.

Until then, I am grateful for our location to be “four hours” from all these magnificent sites and the recovery of my feet so that I could keep up. Thank goodness for the wheelchair!

Gratitude Friday: A Great Ski Season

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Post by Lauren

Ski season is officially over for our household.  With temperatures warming up, the local slopes are slushy by lunchtime.

However, we wanted to dedicate a post in gratitude to the Alps and the ski opportunities that we have had this winter.

Last winter, it was unusually warm.  We heard people say that it only produced about 2 decent snow days and even still, the slopes weren’t ideal.

This season is a stark contrast – there was wonderful skiing to be had pretty much every weekend from the beginning of January until now.  Over the last 3 months, we have visited:

  • La Clusaz, France
  • Les Contamines, France
  • Megève, France
  • Chamonix, France
  • Verbier, Switzerland
  • Saas Fee, Switzerland

We feel lucky that we have had the chance.

Our friend A has major talents with the camera while skiing.  I don’t possess such talents as I always have to concentrate on not falling.  However, since I have a lot of time in the chair lately, I mixed her video footage with my own to create a recap video of our ski exploits.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trPb_eHtZsw

Au Revoir Ski Season – until next year!

And bon-weekend to all.

 

 

 

 

 

Just another day at the office

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Post by Lauren

Last week, Gabe had a company outing to La Clusaz, France.  The group skied as a team building activity.

As the weather warms up, we aren’t sure there will be many more opportunities for skiing.

We hear that Zermatt and Chamonix have year-round skiing so perhaps this could be an option.

Magnificent Megève

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Post by Lauren

Gabe went skiing in Mègeve a few weeks ago when we were having our Arctic temps.    Luckily, two fellows from Geneva accompanied him as I was worried he would freeze to death in the -20 C temps.

However, I am happy to say that they survived.  Below are two photos from his blackberry he captured while out on the frigid French slopes:

Skiing at Megève

Mt. Blanc

While they went for just the day (only about an hour’s drive from Geneva), we have heard good things about the town of Megève  from friends.  Hopefully, we’ll be able to return and perhaps stay in the town next year.

Saas Fee

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Post by Lauren

We decided that it would be good to spend my last weekend prior to surgery doing something wintery. We knew it would be quite awhile before I could experience the outdoors again. At least on foot. The week had been super busy planning for surgery and prepping meals to freeze, so I hadn’t gotten around to selecting a place or activity.

So, we pretty much decided where to go at 9pm Friday night at Happy Hour at S & S’s place. We planned to hit the Carnival celebrations in Wiler and to continue onto Saas Fee in Valais to spend the night and potentially do winter sports Sunday. S booked hotel rooms round midnight for that next day.

Saas Fee is located in a valley very close to Zermatt. Until the mid-twentieth century, it was remote and not accessible by cars. Currently, trains are still not able to reach Saas Fee through its narrow valley. However, even though you can drive there now; the village itself is car-free. You must leave your car at the deck at the city entrance.

Driving in was "squiggly"

 

Majestic mountains on the horizon as we drove into Saas Fee

The books say that Saas Fee is just as picturesque as Zermatt, just without the Matternhorn view. For all Gabe and I know, it was equal since we didn’t see the Matterhorn when we went back in January with Pascal and Gisele.

We arrived at sunset and it was quite nice to walk around and to see the après ski buzz.

 

After exploring, we grabbed a bite of Italian at Boccalino and then had an after dinner drink at Popcorn. We called it an early night due to the ski activities planned for the next day.

Saas Fee was a lovely little town. I think I might prefer Zermatt a little more, but all in all, a nice stop.

 

St. Moritz and the Engiadina Valley

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Post by Lauren

As you read from previous posts, we quite enjoyed the White Turf races in glitzy St. Moritz. What was left out of those recaps, was the stellar beauty of this region of Switzerland.

The Engiadina Valley is in Eastern Switzerland. It took 9 hours for us to get there on the Glacier Express but using faster trains, it can be done in 6 hours.

St. Moritz itself is a pretty town. At 6000 feet, its lakes are frozen most of the winter. I am standing on the lake while taking this photo.

The town of St. Moritz

Sunset also isn’t bad in this part of the world:

Sunset in St. Moritz

The day after the races, we took a little funicular / cogwheel up to Muottas Muragl. This point is about 2456 m high, roughly 8000 feet. On this particular day, it was about -12 C in St. Moritz, but about -20 C at the top. Brrrrr.

From the vantage point in the photo below, St. Moritz is the town in the center of the image. You can see the frozen lake to the left of it. Because we aren’t high-rollers, we stayed in the village of Celerina, which is the town in the foreground. Samedan and Pontresina are also nearby and came recommended.

View of Celerina & St. Moritz from the top of Muottas Muragl

This region is of course famous for skiing and outdoor sports. We saw a ton of cross country skiers, because apparently the valley is quite suitable for that sport.

It is also popular for tobogganing. From the top of this mountain, there is a 4.2 km toboggan run down to the bottom. You can see the little specks (people) zipping around the track.

Nearby Bergün boasts a 6 km track. Its the longest in Europe and travels on a road that is turned into a sledging track since its impassable in winter.

About a year ago, Forbes published an article entitled, “Don’t try this at home”. The article talked about the irony of how cautious this Swiss are, but how this popular sport is so very dangerous.

However, Gabe would still like to try this out before we leave. Perhaps we’ll put it on the docket for next year!

Gratitude Friday: Winter

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Post by Lauren

I know, an odd Gratitude Friday shout-out after all my complaining about the ice and snow and -20 temps. However, I just wanted to reflect on my gratitude for experiencing a full Swiss winter.

If anyone asked me whether to visit in summer or winter, I would have said whatever they would like; however, summer is probably better.

My dental hygienist actually lived 2 years near St Moritz when she was out of school. She provided us great info before coming. Anyhow, I visited the dentist on our home leave in November and posed this question to her. She is newly married and said she plans to take her husband to Switzerland for his first time….but she noted “it must be the winter”. She recounted that her favorite memories are in the winter and that is what she wanted him to see. Good to know.

And now dear readers, after only 6 weeks in the Swiss winter wonderland, I’d agree. Winter here is fabulous. It is unlike anything that I have ever seen before. So, don’t be scared of the ice and frigid temps…..its all a part of this beautiful world we live in.

I am grateful I got to witness this winter beauty!

Bon weekend, everyone!

Moonlight Snowshoeing

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Post by Lauren

On the night of Gabe’s birthday, we went snowshoeing in the Jura mountains, around St. Cergue, with AIWC. It was the night of the full moon and it was beautifully clear.

I wish I could share lots of images to capture the beauty but it was so cold on the hike that there was no way I was going to take my hands out of my two pairs of gloves to snap photos.

How cold is too cold to remove hands from gloves? Negative 14 degrees.

I did manage a few shots as we started and finished.

Getting geared up in our snowshoes

Unfortunately, I got a bit faint about 10 minutes in… I think the combination of altitude and the chill with the exercise got to my body and I had that feeling that I was going to pass out. We had some experienced snowshoers in the group and they assured as that this was normal due to all the changes in temperature and pressure with the sudden movement. Luckily, they were right and I started to even out in dizziness as we pressed on. It was a good thing as the bus had already departed from our drop off point and it was still a 45 minute hike in the snow to our pick up point.

So thankful the group was so kind and patient to me, especially those who were experienced. Glad to report that I wasn’t eaten by coyotes and didn’t freeze to death in the wilderness and we made it to the end destination of a fondue restaurant.

We left our snowshoes before heading into the fondue restaurant

Since we really had to work for it, it may have been the best fondue we have ever had.