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CH & IT Roadtrip
  • Two to Travel
  • Ahmet Erkun

CH & IT Roadtrip

A month-long road trip exploring Switzerland ... with a dip into Northern Italy ... Geneva-to-Geneva Roundtrip. Les mer
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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    Having grown in an earthquake zone, I'm happy to have missed this one — Mürren.
    Heading up to Mürren from the Stechelberg Cable Car Station — Switzerland.Mürrenbachfall on the way up to Mürren — Switzerland.Up, up, and over the mountain we go — Mürren, Switzerland.Welcome to Mürren, Switzerland.Our hotel is conveniently near the cable car station — Mürren, Switzerland.Some of the 'Swiss decor' in the entrance to the lobby of Hotel Alpenruh — Mürren, Switzerland.2The mountains feel like they are close enough to touch — Mürren, Switzerland.Around the village of Mürren, Switzerland.Around the village of Mürren, Switzerland.A car-free village with a tractor driving down the Main Street! — Mürren, Switzerland.Hot tea with the Eiger looking over my shoulder ... and a bit of Mönch as well — Mürren, SwitzerlandThe Eiger with some fireweed wild flowers in the foreground — Mürren, Switzerland.Eiger & a bit of the Mönch — Mürren, Switzerland.Mui found the perfectly sized Toblerone ... he wishes 😄 — Mürren, Switzerland.Back to the Hotel Alpenruh to get settled in our room — Mürren, Switzerland.A comfy room with a view ... and all the amenities we need for two nights — Mürren, Switzerland.View of the village and the Eiger from our balcony — Mürren, Switzerland.Panoramic view from our balcony ... from the village to the cable car station — Mürren, Switzerland.Paragliders soaring over the village — Mürren, Switzerland.Paragliders soaring ... some higher than others — Mürren, Switzerland.1I get creative framing the scenery through a heart carved into our balcony railing — Mürren.Our view from the balcony includes the cable cars going up and down — Mürren, Switzerland.

    OtR: Beatenberg to Mürren

    23. juli, Sveits ⋅ ⛅ 55 °F

    “Earthquake! Magnitude 4.2!”

    Checking the Swiss Meteo app for the weather forecast for today’s destination, I came across a notification about an earthquake in the Gimmelwald/Mürren area …two days ago. No damage … just frayed nerves. Frankly, I don’t associate Switzerland with earthquakes, so the news came as a surprise. And it led me down the rabbit hole of research to find out if the Alps are still growing. The short answer is, yes. The Alps are continuing to get taller. Not uniformly, however. Some parts are losing ground due to erosion.

    Anyway, moving on … not just from the earthquake, but literally as well. Today we would be partly OtR … still in the Bernese Oberland. The time had come to leave Beatenberg for our next stop … a two-nighter in Mürren. Technically, we could have gone there on a day trip from Beatenberg. However, Mui wanted to reminisce; and I wanted to see for myself what he had said was one of the highlights of the trip he took to Switzerland in 2015 with his mother and sister.

    Mürren is an alpine village at 5,400 feet (1,650m) … situated at the base of the Schilthorn, a high summit in the Bernese Oberland. It sits more or less across the valley from what some refer to as the ‘Swiss Summit Skyline’ … the triumvirate of the Eiger, the Mönch, and the Jungfrau.

    Like so many other villages in the area, this one is also car-free (though there is a road for essential vehicles). We drove through the Lauterbrunnen Valley to Stechelberg — where the road ends — and parked the car at the cable car station. The drive to Stechelberg was a familiar one, so we did not dally along the way.

    As Mui had done in 2015, we had reserved our room at the Hotel Alpenruh as a package that included our cable car tickets to and from Mürren. It was a good deal … even with the SHFC, we could not have beat the price of the tickets, which included a roundtrip ride up to the summit of the Schilthorn as well. All we had to do when we got to the station was to give our names to the ticket agent. He looked us up on his computer and printed out the tickets for our ride up the mountain.

    The 4-minute ride was scenic, the cable car running parallel to the Mürrenbachfall. At 1,368 feet (417m), this waterfall is the highest in Switzerland. On this day, the flow was a mere trickle of what it is after the spring snow melt. By 11:25a, we were at the Mürren Cable Car Station. Five minutes thereafter we were ringing the bell at the check-in counter at Hotel Alpenruh.

    Our “Time for Two” package called for a superior room with a balcony and mountain views. None were ready yet as check-in wasn’t until 2:00p. Expecting that to be the case, we just wanted to drop off our bags and go get a bite to eat. Bags secured, we strolled along the main street, looking at menus along the way. We noticed that the village was crowded with day-trippers. We knew that would change by late afternoon, however, so we left our sightseeing until later. Nonetheless, I could not resist snapping a few shots along the way.

    The restaurants and cafés were doing a booming business; empty tables were few and far between. We eventually settled on Café Liv for a light lunch … with the Eiger keeping an eye on us from a distance.

    Tummies sated, we strolled back to the Alpenruh. The concierge greeted us with the news that our room was ready. Excellent. As promised, we were given a room with mountain views … including the Eiger and a bit of the Mönch, and several others that I have yet to identify. Bonus? Village views off to one side. Taking advantage of the lovely afternoon, we sat on the balcony for a little while after settling into our room … watching the cable car traveling up and down, and the paragliders soaring in the sky. Didn’t dally long, however. We wanted to hike down to another village and now was the time to do it.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    Alpine farm on the way from Mürren to Gimmelwald, Switzerland.
    A cute calf checking us out as we check it out ... on the way to Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Pop of yellow adds charm to the floral display ... on the way to Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Interesting snow slide barriers ... on the way to Gimmelwald, Switzerland.At this hour, the cable cars that are going up are mostly empty ... on the way to Gimmelwald.Welcome to Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Another cable car ... but this one is heading somewhere else other than Mürren.Too bad the mountain tops are cloaked — Gimmelwald, Switzerland.A few more steps and now we can see the main village — Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Nice spot to take a load off and enjoy the views — Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Panorama of the scenery and the village — Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Charming wood pile — Gimmelwald, Switzerland.This goat's curiosity was strong enough for it to pause grazing to check us out — Gimmelwald.Gimmelwald, Switzerland.On the wall of a hut in Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Even the water trough is decorated with flowers — Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Old boots recycled as flower pots — Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Gimmelwald, Switzerland.Some of the colorful blooms from our hike to Gimmelwald, Switzerland.

    Mürren: Hiking Down to Gimmelwald

    23. juli, Sveits ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F

    “If Heaven isn’t what it’s cracked up to be, send me back to Gimmelwald.”

    I read this statement on grindelwald.com, a website authored by an aficionado of this small, village in the Alps. The website continued, “… No cars, no TV, no newspapers, not even a food store, but many cows and plenty of cheese.” Sounded idyllic to us. When we found the village on the map, and realized that it was down the road, so to speak, from Mürren, we added it to our plans.

    Situated at an elevation of 4,472 feet (1,363 m), Gimmelwald is essentially between Stechelberg in the Lauterbrunnen Valley and Mürren, about 1,000 feet further up the mountain. Accessible only on foot or by cable car, the name of this unspoiled village was first mentioned in 1346. Not sure what the population was back then, but today it is around 100.

    We’d been told that there was a path we could hike down. Turns out that it was the road that connects Gimmelwald with Mürren. There weren’t many vehicles with which to contend, so traffic wasn’t an issue. We encountered other hikers along the way … but few and far between. Overall, an easy hike that we found to be quite peaceful. Cows and goats in farmyards … colorful flowers along the side of the road and decorating huts and houses … cable cars passing overhead … and of course, expansive Alpine views that accompanied every step of our hike.

    When we reached the village, there was nary a person around. Even the shop was unattended … the shopkeeper depending on the honesty of the shoppers. We decided to grab a drink … maybe a snack. Of the two options available to us, we settled on the Biergarten at Pension Gimmelwald. Aha … here’s where everyone was. Also at the Mountain Hostel, around the corner. Mostly hikers by the look of their gear.

    Drinks with a view and then it was time to head back to Mürren to explore it a bit more in depth. Gimmelwald is a stop on the Stechelberg-Mürren line, so it was just a matter of buying two one-way tickets and take the easy way up.

    *** SHFC Reconciliation (PER PERSON): CHF 120 outlay … with the card paid off, the Gimmelwald-Mürren cable car ticket added CHF $4.40 to our credit balance. We have now saved CHF 39.70 on public transport in Switzerland.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    2With the day-trippers gone, the streets are eerily quiet — Mürren, Switzerland.
    From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.Standing guard at the fountain — Mürren, Switzerland.1From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.The fire station mascot is keeping an eye on things from high up — Mürren, Switzerland.Marienkappelle ... the Roman Catholic Church — Mürren, Switzerland.Marienkappelle ... the Roman Catholic Church — Mürren, Switzerland.Marienkappelle ... the Roman Catholic Church — Mürren, Switzerland.Ceiling of the Marienkappelle ... the Roman Catholic Church — Mürren, Switzerland.1Kitty cat roaming the streets — Mürren, Switzerland.From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.Kicking off the Folklore Night festivities with music — Mürren, Switzerland.From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.From our stroll around the village — Mürren, Switzerland.Cute napkin where we had dinner at the Edelweiss Hotel restaurant — Mürren, Switzerland.

    Mürren: Exploring Crowd-Free

    23. juli, Sveits ⋅ ☁️ 64 °F

    By 4:30p, we were back in our room at the Hotel Alpenruh. We sat on the balcony to relax for a bit and rest our weary feet. The peaks were showing evidence of clearing, however, that didn’t last long. The sky had been getting progressively more overcast … the cloud deck getting lower. Soon enough the mountains were back in hiding.

    We left the hotel around 6:00p to get some dinner and go for a wander. After the hub-bub earlier in the day, the streets were eerily quiet; the atmosphere peaceful. The day-trippers were gone. The village now belonged to the residents and those of us who were booked into accommodations. The overlook that affords some of the best views was no longer a beehive of selfie-takers who posed interminably until they got the perfect shot for their social media pages. Time to take a selfie or two of our own. Except that the light was really blah … we’ll try again tomorrow, but at least we have the photos from when we braved the crowds at lunch time.

    As we strolled along the main street, we perused menus. Eventually, we settled on the restaurant at the Hotel Edelweiss … partially because of the terrace with its view of the mountains. We were about to be seated when it started raining. So, we ended up dining indoors instead … which was perhaps a good thing as the temperature had dropped and it was turning chilly. Good food … schnitzel and a salad for Mui; rösti with pears and raclette cheese for me … good, but oh so rich.

    Our after-dinner stroll took us off the main street. Hardly anyone was out and about. We passed residential homes and boutique hotels; stopped to enjoy window-boxes overflowing with flowers; and checked out the carved statues we came across. When we found the door of the Marienkappelle Catholic Church open, we went inside for a quick peek. The church was built between 1892-1893 as a post and beam structure, with neo-Gothic style windows. It is apparently one of the first Roman Catholic churches in the Bernese Oberland. The stained glass windows standing out in the otherwise simply decorated church.

    As we were meandering, we heard the distant notes of music. It sounded like it was coming from a marching band. Walking towards the music, we found the band walking in the direction of the Alpines Sportzentrum. Turns out that tonight was folklore evening. A cavernous hall was filled with picnic tables; at the stalls along one wall food was being prepared. Too bad we didn’t know about this earlier. Too full from dinner, we continued our stroll … this time towards the hotel for a good night’s rest.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    By 8:00a, the white wall of clouds began clearing, allowing us to see the village — Mürren.
    We're going to head up to Allmendhubel by funicular — Mürren, Switzerland.Crossing paths with the funicular that is heading down — Mürren, Switzerland.1View of Mürren from the funicular to Allmendhubel — Switzerland.View of the area around the funicular station from the sundeck — Allmendhubel, Switzerland.Selfie with the ubiquitous big letters — Allmendhubel, Switzerland.Edelweiss ... on the flower trail — Allmendhubel, Switzerland.3Suddenly we find ourselves in the midst of a herd of cows.2Mui makes a new friend — Allmendhubel, Switzerland.A selfie op that we can't pass up — Allmendhubel, Switzerland.Heading down to Mürren from Allmendhubel — Switzerland.Heading down to Mürren from Allmendhubel — Switzerland.Heading down to Mürren from Allmendhubel — Switzerland.Fireweed add a pop of color to the scenery ... on the way down to Mürren from Allmendhubel.Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc.Heading down to Mürren from Allmendhubel — Switzerland.Heading down to Mürren from Allmendhubel — Switzerland.2Mürrenbach ... a bach is a body of water that has a current; it is smaller than a river.Mürrenbach ... heading down to Mürren from Allmendhubel — Switzerland.Mürrenbach ... where it cascades down the mountain, it forms Mürrenbachfall.If the clouds had lifted, this would have been our view from Allmendhubel.

    Mürren: Day 2 … Allmendhubel Hike

    24. juli, Sveits ⋅ 🌧 48 °F

    Completely socked in!

    There was nothing but a wall of white clouds outside our window when I woke up at 7:30a. Thirty minutes later, the clouds were on the move. The town came into view very quickly. The mountains took their own sweet time … never clearing fully unfortunately. Off to the right, the cable car was going up and down … no passengers. There was a big box attached to the bottom that had not been there yesterday. I’m guessing daily supplies are transported in this manner during the early runs of the day.

    After breakfast, we geared up for a hike. There are a number of them that one can do from Mürren. The webcams showed the views were similarly socked-in at all of the trails. So, we decided to head up to Allmendhubel, described as “Mürren’s own mountain.” The plan was to take the funicular up ~900 feet (275m) to the station at 6,257 feet (1,907m). We’d decide what to do once we got up there.

    Decision made, we walked to the station near the village center. The upper reaches of the mountain were hidden by the fog … perhaps low-lying clouds. Unsure whether we would be hiking or taking the funicular down, we bought one-way tickets with our SFHC. Minutes later we were on the way up, the track partially going through a tunnel. We got some nice views of Mürren before we entered the tunnel … glad for at least that much.

    Considering we couldn’t see much beyond the tunnel entrance from Mürren, it came as no surprise that the scenery when we arrived at Allmendhubel was veiled by the mist. At least the immediate vicinity was clear, so we did have some ‘scenery’ to entertain us. We picked up some hot beverages at the café as the damp weather added to the chill factor and we needed a warm-up. We were hoping to drink our beverages on the sundeck, but the benches were all as damp as the air. At least it wasn’t raining. We ended up sipping our drinks while we wandered around, watching the antics of the families in the kids area.

    After the ubiquitous ‘big letters’ selfie, we headed to the Flower Trail that loops around a garden where one can not only see plants from Alpine meadows and pastures, but also examples of mountain plants from Africa and Asia, and more. Frankly, there wasn’t much to see, but we did get to see some Edelweiss, so we called our time in the garden a win.

    One of the highlights of our time at the garden was a small herd of cows. We were studying some purple bell flowers when we heard the faint sound of bells. We looked around but didn’t see any cows, so we thought that perhaps they were wind chimes. Suddenly, as we were walking towards the sound of the bells — which was growing progressively stronger — the cows appeared out of the mist. The herd continued past us in the direction from which we had come … stopping to graze frequently. We continued in the direction from which the herd had come … dodging fresh cow patties!

    With no sign that the weather was going to clear up for us to enjoy the views, we looked at hiking options. No sense going up … the low-lying clouds would hide even more of the view. So, we decided to hike down. We’d been told that the North Face Trail would eventually get us to Mürren — a little over 3.5 miles (6 km). Or, we could take a shortcut. I don’t know if we followed the shorter trail exactly, but our route took us through Mirrenberg, and then across the Mürrenbach, which continues down the mountain to form Mürrenbachfall. The trail was mostly dirt, though the section we followed through Mirrenberg was a paved road.

    I have no idea what distance we covered, but I do know that we took nearly two hours with stops for photos along the way.

    Oh, by the way, the clouds never did lift, so we never did get to see the mountains from high on up.

    ———————————————-

    *** SHFC Reconciliation (PER PERSON): CHF 120 outlay … with today’s purchase of a CHF $3.50 funicular ticket to Allmendhubel, we are now ahead of the game by CHF 43.20 pp.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    We are welcomed back from Allmendhubel by a pair of cute frogs — Mürren, Switzerland.
    Colorful flowers in a garden near where we come back from our hike — Mürren, Switzerland.A modern chalet with typical Swiss bells — Mürren, Switzerland.Lunch @ Alti Mezg — Mürren, Switzerland.Lunch at Alti Mezg — Mürren, Switzerland.Cheese fondue for lunch at Alti Mezg — Mürren, Switzerland.So far, the only mountain goats we've seen are sculptures of one kind or another — Mürren.Candlelight Dinner with champagne @ Hotel Alpenruh — Mürren, Switzerland.Candlelight Dinner with champagne @ Hotel Alpenruh — Mürren, Switzerland.Delicious food for our Candlelight Dinner @ Hotel Alpenruh — Mürren, Switzerland.

    Mürren: Day 2 … Lunch and Dinner

    24. juli, Sveits ⋅ 🌧 50 °F

    It was almost 1:00p when we completed our Allmendhubel hike. Our route had brought us back to the Hotel Alpenhus. Perfect. We dropped off our bags and headed out for a light lunch.

    This time we went to Alti Mezg … an available table on the sidewalk a bonus for our fondue lunch. Hot tea was our beverage of choice … appreciated all the more towards the end of our meal when the temperature started dropping quite quickly. Following a short post-lunch stroll in the village, we returned to rest up. I intended to sit on the balcony while Mui napped, but even layered up it was too chilly. Instead, I fiddled with photos and did a little journaling at the desk in the room.

    Around 6:30p, we went to the dining room at our hotel for the Candlelight Dinner included in our package. Our meal started with a house-marinated salmon appetizer served with a dill sauce, followed by a creamy tomato soup. Next was a lemon sorbet palate cleanser served in a champagne flute. The main course was a tenderloin with peppercorn sauce and a side of potatoes au gratin and sautéed vegetables. We wrapped with a local dessert … Alpenruh Cream Slice … custard between two mille-feuille shells. We were pleasantly stuffed by the time we left the table.

    We will be leaving Mürren tomorrow. But before we do so, we have one more thing we want to do. We are praying that despite what the forecast calls for, we will have at least some sunshine and blue skies.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    Mürren is the first station on the 3-stage cable car system between Stechelberg and Schilthorn.
    2Heading up from Mürren to Birg on the cable car — Switzerland.Brilliant skies and sunshine as we approach Birg the intermediate station on the way to Schilthorn.Scenery from the cable car on the way to the Birg Station — Switzerland.Piz Gloria from the cable car as we continue to the Birg Station — Switzerland.Promoting Spy World — Birg Station, Switzerland.Spectacular view as we continue up to Schilthorn on the cable car — Switzerland.Looking down from the cable car on the way up to Schilthorn — Switzerland.Our 'haloed' cable car reflection on the way up to Schilthorn — Switzerland.Jungfrau ... on the way up to Schilthorn — Switzerland.On final approach to the summit of Schilthorn — Switzerland.Panorama of the view from the Sky Terrace — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.From the terrace — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.Better take a selfie before the view closes up — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.And then a white wall of clouds and nothing more — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.Panorama of the Sky View Terrace ... even that patch of blue disappears — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.With London way out there somewhere ... so the sign on the ceiling says — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.The buffet stations stay stationary as the tables revolve 360 degrees — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.Champagne anyone? — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.The Golden Lattice from the movie now used to display rocks from around Switzerland — Piz Gloria.More of the rocks on display in the golden lattice — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.This is the view we would have seen had the weather gods cooperated — Piz Gloria, Schilthorn.On the way down from Mürren to Stechelberg — SwitzerlandHope for blue skies in Mürren when I stop to photograph Mürrenbachfall — Stechelberg, Switzerland.

    Mürren: Breakfast in the Clouds

    25. juli, Sveits ⋅ ☁️ 36 °F

    The early bird catches the worm!

    In this case, the early birds at least got a brief glimpse of sunshine and views on the way up to Schilthorn … and even a bit from the terrace.

    Schilthorn, at 9,744 feet (2,970m), is one of the ‘shorter’ peaks in the Bernese Alps. Yet, it is quite well known … for two things mostly. The instantly-recognizable building at the summit is one of them. Its connection to “Bond, James Bond” is another … it was here that some of the scenes in the movie “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” were filmed, starring George Lazenby as the world famous spy.

    Our breakfast-included-reservation at Hotel Alpenruh came with the option of enjoying one of our morning meals at Piz Gloria, the revolving restaurant at the summit of Schilthorn. We had read that the food was so-so. Nonetheless, we wanted to see the view anyway, we decided to take the hotel up on the offer. Since we’d be departing Mürren today, we requested a reservation for 9:00a. We figured the 8:10a cable car from Mürren to Schilthorn would take us up some 4,300 feet (1,310m) and put us at the top around 8:30a … giving us ½-hour to wander around to enjoy the views before breakfast.

    The tickets that were included with our hotel package covered the roundtrip ride up to Schilthorn via Birg, so we did not have to purchase tickets. Alas, there was nothing but thick fog/low-lying clouds ahead of us as the cable car left Mürren. Sigh!

    Just as we were resigning ourselves to another day of having the summits cloaked by clouds, our luck changed. In an instant, the clouds started to part. High up in the distance the sky was blue and there was sunshine! The jagged peaks of the Alps became visible … as did Piz Gloria at the tippy top of Schilthorn. The question now … would these conditions last?

    At the Birg station (elevation 8,790 feet [2,677m]), we hotfooted it to the cable car that goes up to Schilthorn. With no one else in line, and the next cable car not expected for another 15-20 minutes, the operator left Birg early, giving us a headstart. The scenery was spectacular … the green vegetation covering some of the mountain landscape looked like velvet … the white clouds were brilliant … the black rocks of the Alps stood in stark contrast against the blue sky. Below us, we passed over a couple of lakes and patches of snow, and even saw a ‘haloed’ reflection of our cable car. It was quite surreal.

    When we reached the Schilthorn Station, we quickly got our bearings and headed up to the Skyline View Platform on floor 0 … oddly the arrival level at the station is marked -3. We negotiated a few detours along the way due to ongoing construction to upgrade the cable car system and the facilities and found the right door to get us out onto the terrace, part of which was also closed due to construction.

    It didn’t take us long to figure out that the clouds were moving back in. We walked around the terrace, photographing the view before it was veiled completely. Five minutes later we were surrounded by clouds in every direction. The “Swiss Skyline” — Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau — and the 200 other peaks of the Bernese and Valais Alps were all gone. The view was still in hiding when we left some two hours later. Time for breakfast.

    Piz Gloria takes about 45 minutes to revolve 360° on its axis; thus giving everyone a chance to see the views from every direction … no need to fight over tables. In the 007 movie, the building served as the infamous villain Blofeld’s hideout and was named Piz Gloria. After the filming was completed, the restaurant simply retained the name. Why not? The movie was a free promotion of the locale after all. It claims to be the first revolving restaurant of its kind, but I read that Eye of the Needle in Seattle actually predates it by seven years or so.

    At 9:00a, there were very few others having breakfast/brunch. We presented our voucher and were escorted to reserved seats by the window … with a view of … nothing but clouds. So our “breakfast with a view” was actually “breakfast in the clouds.” Not even a break in the white wall as the restaurant took us around to different views. Oh well … at least we got a peak at the view first thing in the morning. I checked the webcam a few times later in the day and the cloud-cover seemed to be constant.

    Breakfast was fine … buffet style, and we helped ourselves to everything, including champagne. It was weird to have a buffet station next to us one moment, only for it to be replaced by another as the restaurant floor with the tables revolved continuously. As it did so, signs attached to the roof pointed the direction of major cities and distances.

    There are a number of attractions at Schilthorn … including the Walk of Fame, described as “… where cast and crew members of “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” leave their traces at the legendary Bond film location.” We skipped this one, and the Spy World and Cinema … the latter two were still closed. We would have walked out to the Piz Gloria View observation deck on the ridge, but … well, you know, those pesky clouds were hiding even the restaurant from view. Instead, we decided to head back down. We had a drive ahead of us and different views to enjoy … weather willing.

    When we got to the Schilthorn cable car station, we hopped on for an immediate ride. There would have been a short wait at Birg, but the operator allowed us onto the next car going down with a staff member … sans driver, operated remotely. Getting off in Mürren, we went to hotel, collected our bags, and completed our check out. Then we took the cable car down to Stechelberg to collect our car.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    Welcome committee — Kandersteg, Switzerland.
    Evangelical Reform Church — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Evangelical Reform Church — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Evangelical Reform Church — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Ceiling detail @ the Evangelical Reform Church — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Kander River Evangelical Reform Church — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Gardenscape from our wander — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Colorful blooms from a residential garden — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Gardenscape from our wander ... bunnies in the background — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Waterfall at the turnaround point of our wander — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Belle Epoque Hotel Victoria — Kandersteg, Switzerland.The original Ritter Hotel from 1789 — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Room 421 @ the Belle Epoque Hotel Victoria — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Panorama of the view from our room — Kandersteg, Switzerland.Consecrated in 1977, St Mary's Catholic Church is a recent addition to the village — Kandersteg.Charming village scenery with the Kander River flowing under a stone bridge — Kandersteg.The 'resident cat' at Café Schweizerhof has its own comfy chair — Kandersteg, Switzerland.A little bit of clearing and color at sunset ... a good omen for tomorrow? — Kandersteg, SwitzerlandThe photo that prompted us to add Kandersteg to our itinerary. Hope to see it tomorrow.

    Next Stop … Kandersteg

    25. juli, Sveits ⋅ 🌧 57 °F

    Since we were hoping to do a hike in the Kandersteg area, we didn’t dally once we reached Stechelberg.

    Kandersteg is noted for its mountain scenery, and offers a number of hiking trails in the summer. It was a photograph of Oeschinensee that had us stealing a day from our planned stay in Beatenberg and another one from Zermatt to include the area in our plans.

    We arrived in Kandersteg around 12:30p … way too early to check into our room at the Belle Epoque Hotel Victoria & Apartments. We found a parking spot in front of the hotel, used our parking app to set our departure date for the 27th, and went inside to leave our bags with the concierge so we could go for a wander.

    Though the skies were overcast, there was no rain at that point. Mother Nature would be making up for that grace period later.

    First, we briefly peeked inside the Kandersteg Evangelical Reform Church … simply decorated but with a beautiful wood ceiling. Then we headed off to do a scenic walk along the Kander River … recommended by the desk clerk at the hotel. Perhaps we made a wrong turn, because our steps took us along a road lined with homes and ended at a gondola station. We debated going up the mountain, but the summit was cloaked in clouds. When it started to rain, that sealed the deal and we returned to the hotel, where our room was ready for check-in.

    The history of the hotel goes back to 1789 when “… for the solace and necessity of travelers and the sick’” a tavern was built in Kandersteg. Named the Ritter, it consisted of 12 chalets. In 1895, with the rise in tourism, the Victoria section of the hotel was added in the Edwardian and Victorian styles.

    As requested, we were given a room on the top floor — #421. The top floor for guests, that is. Turns out that they use the 5th floor for storage and as housing for the international students hired for the summer season. Mui had to caution them earlier tonight when the noise of running feet above us kept echoing in our room. No problems afterward.

    As for the room … both the bedroom and the bathroom are spacious, but they lack charm. The floor is a bit creaky, but not bothersome. The biggest issue is the incongruously modern ceiling lights that are not working and the two lamps by the bed are insufficient to light the room. The front desk staff was no help when we brought the problem to their attention. Luckily, the student (from Argentina) who is a member of the cleaning staff for our floor brought us a couple of floor lamps … he earned a special tip. Anyway, we are making do, but the room should have never been assigned to begin with.

    The light rain that had dogged our footsteps back to the hotel had turned into a serious downpour while we were settling in. By 3:15p, however, the rain was starting to show evidence of letting up, so we went out for a short wander. Then to Café Schweizerhof for an early dinner. The kitchen was closing at 4:00p … which the waitress explained is when the chef takes his rest before the dinner service starts @ 6:00p. The ‘chef-in-training’ provided tasty food, so no complaints.

    By the time we left the café, it was raining again … steady downpour. So, we returned to the room for an early night. With no comfortable seating in the room, Mui is having to make do with the bed. We moved the small table in the bathroom to the bedroom and I am using that as a desk to draft this post. Bedtime soon.

    Tomorrow’s plan calls for us to take the cable car to Oeschinensee for a hike. Fingers crossed the weather will cooperate.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    You can't see the rain in this photo, but you can see the low-lying clouds — Kandersteg, Switzerland
    Many more waterfalls today ... some a trickle; others being fed by the continuous rain — Kandersteg.Waterfall through the heavy downpour — Kandersteg, Switzerland.

    Kandersteg: Rainy Rest Day

    26. juli, Sveits ⋅ 🌧 59 °F

    “Rain, rain, go away
    Come again another day. …”

    So goes the nursery rhyme. I’ll add to it by asking the rain to preferably return after we leave Switzerland!

    Today was a day of downpours. When the wet stuff let up for a bit, it wasn’t for long. That pretty much tells today’s story.

    The weather never cleared for us to do the hike that had brought us here in the first place. No museums and such to visit in Kandersteg … or the immediate vicinity. We looked further afield to find somewhere to go, but every webcam we checked showed fog and rain. In the end, we declared it a day of rest. Mui napped most of the day away; I did some bookkeeping and other housekeeping chores.

    We went out briefly a couple of times. Once to buy some socks that are a better fit with the new hiking boots we bought for me yesterday. And once to get a bite for dinner. We wanted to return to Café Schweizerhof. As luck would have it, most of the tables were reserved for a special occasion. So, we ended up at the Ritter Restaurant at our hotel. The food wasn’t bad … Mui enjoyed the schnitzel he ordered; my rösti with raclette cheese was way too rich and I had to push the dish aside after eating only about a quarter of it.

    Back to the room for an early night. We hope to get an early start tomorrow … fingers once again crossed for improved weather.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    Our first train ride today is the Lötschberg Tunnel car train ... from Kandersteg to Goppenstein.
    Unlike two days ago, there is no long queue of cars waiting to board the train — Kandersteg.We drive onto the train and off we go — Lötschberg Tunnel car train in Kandersteg, Switzerland.We enjoy lovely alpine views part of the way during our ride on the car train — Switzerland.Off the train, the next step today is to drive to Täsch for another train ride — Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Vineyards ... from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.Scenery from our drive to Täsch, Switzerland.End of the road ... need to take a train from here to go up to Zermatt — Täsch, Switzerland.

    OtR: Kandersteg to Täsch to Zermatt

    27. juli, Sveits ⋅ ☁️ 54 °F

    Woke up to no rain today! Of course, the weather was clearing now that we were leaving Kandersteg!!!

    The dining room at the Belle Epoque Hotel Victoria opened @ 7:00a this morning. No hot food at that hour. OK by us. An earlier than planned breakfast meant that we were on the move by 8:15a … heading to the Lötschberg Tunnel car train even earlier than we had anticipated.

    Car trains are a convenient way of crossing Switzerland’s mountainous regions and avoid long drives on the curvy roads in the mountain passes. There are apparently five of these trains that traverse the Alps. The road here ends just beyond Kandersteg. To travel further south, one must take the train. Or drive all the way back to Interlaken and then around to the Furka Pass … a scenic drive, but making for a very long day. So, the car train it would be for us.

    When we arrived in Kandersteg on the 25th, we drove by an incredibly long queue of cars at a standstill … stretching quite a distance out of town. It was the line-up for the vehicles that were waiting to board the car train. When we went out later that day to check on the logistics for embarking the train, the line was still very long. That led us to pre-purchase our ticket online … good for any departure within a year. This would allow us to by-pass the line at the ticket kiosk and go through a different lane to queue-up for the train.

    Turns out that having advance tickets was unnecessary this morning. When we arrived at 8:27a, there was absolutely no vehicles in sight. Having our ticket in hand, however, we were able to use the self-service gate to check in and board the 8:36a train that was minutes away from departing. Ticket scanned, we simply drove down to the train, entered the lane indicated by the handler, and drove up a ramp and onto the train … continuing forward through several empty carriages until our forward progress was blocked by a parked vehicle. We then turned off the engine, rolled down the windows, and settled in for the 18-minute ride to Goppenstein at the other end.

    The ride was interesting. Part of it was in the open … with views; part of it went through the Lötschberg Tunnel, construction for which started in 1906. The tunnel has been in regular service since 1913. At the highest point of the 9-mile (14.6 km) track, we reached 4,070 ft (1,240 m) above sea level. Soon enough, we were de-training in Goppenstein.

    Our drive after de-training took us through a series of short tunnels that seemed like they were built primarily to protect vehicles from avalanches. It was a pleasant enough drive … partly cloudy skies with intermittent sunshine and blue skies … passing by and through many villages. A more industrial ambiance overall. There was nowhere to pullover to enjoy the scenery, so I had to make do with drive-by photography.

    Around 9:45a, we arrived in Täsch … where the road dead ends. Finding the Matterhorn Terminal was easy. Because we had reserved our parking space here in advance a few days ago, the scanner at the entrance read the license plate and the barrier opened automatically. As it turns out, we could have arrived sans reservation today. There were plenty of open spaces and we found one easily enough on level -3. Securing the car, we went up to level -1 to purchase our R/T tickets using our SHFC for the train that was about to leave. By 10:10 we were seated. By 10:16 the train was rolling. By 10:28, the 12-minute ride was over … the highlight being the glimpse we caught of the Matterhorn from our starboard side seats.

    ———————————————————————

    *** SHFC Reconciliation (PER PERSON): CHF 120 outlay … we added to our credit balance with the CHF 8.60 R/T Zermatt Shuttle ticket purchase. We are now ahead of the game by CHF 48.30/person.    Les mer

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  • CH & IT Roadtrip
    Our first glimpse of the Matterhorn from the Gornergrat train — Zermatt, Switzerland.
    And again ... Matterhorn with Zermatt village ... from the Gornergrat train — Switzerland.Not the best selfie in the world ... but a keeper — from the train — Switzerland.Around every corner we get clear views of the Matterhorn and the peaks of the Pennine Alps.View of the peaks of the Pennine Alps from the Roterboden train station — Switzerland.The Matterhorn and Riffellsee reflection. We'll be heading down for better reflections.Grenzgletscher (Border Glacier) flows down the right side of Monte Rosa to join Gornergletscher.The combined Gornergletscher and Grenzgletscher fill the valley between the mountains.Patches of blue fill the sky and brighten the view of the Pennine Alps — Switzerland.The Matterhorn ... this time with some blue skies as a backdrop — Switzerland.This reflection view on Riffellsee is why we came here — Switzerland.With the Matterhorn peak at 14,682 feet, that paraglider is definitely flying high.The next photo identifies most of the peaks in this view — Switzerland.Screenshot from the PeakFinder app.Left to Right: The Monte Rosa Massif; Grenzgletscher; the Liskamm — SwitzerlandDetail screenshot of the peaks in the previous photo.One last shot of the Matterhorn from near the Rotenboden Station — Switzerland.Had to 'steal-with-photo-credit' this Toblerone shot from the Gornergratbahn website.

    Zermatt: Matterhorn from Rotenboden

    27. juli, Sveits ⋅ ☁️ 46 °F

    Beware… lots of photos of the Matterhorn in this footprint … though I am giving you a break and not sharing too many from when the backdrop was overcast.

    Our plan for today was to wander around Zermatt after storing our luggage at the train station, have a late lunch, check-in at the apartment at 4:00p, and shop for a couple of self-catered meals. Tomorrow we would go up to Gornergrat and the Matterhorn.

    A check of the weather on the Swiss Meteo app, however, had us considering flipping our plans. Seeing the Matterhorn wide open on the Gornergrat webcam sealed the deal. We walked over to the Gornergratbahn, purchased our tickets, and got on the next train going up. Scoring starboard seats, we had great views of the iconic pyramid-shaped Matterhorn most of the way up, and even managed a selfie when the train stopped at one of the interim stations.

    Including the train station in Zermatt, there are seven stops on the Gornergratbahn. As long as you continue to travel in the same direction — always up or always down — you can get on and off at as many stations as you wish. We knew that there was the potential for reflection views of the Matterhorn if we got off at the Rotenboden Station (elevation 9,235 feet (2,815m) … one before the last station. So, that’s what we did.

    After stopping a few minutes for photos from near the station, we started our short hike down to Riffellsee … going through the Alpine Garden. The botanist who was checking the plants suggested that we take the slightly longer but less steep trail down to the lake … good recommendation since the pebbles and rocks underfoot were loose.

    Even from high on up, it was apparent that we were going to be rewarded with a reflection of the Matterhorn on the still waters of the lake. True, the backdrop was not the hoped-for clear blue sky. But there was not a ripple on the lake (except when some idiot threw in stones); the air was crystal clear; the Matterhorn was showing off its iconic shape … the other peaks were vying for our attention as well. We got beautiful reflection shots from several different vantage points.

    After about 50 minutes, we hiked half-way up the trail to check out the scenery in another direction … glaciers streaming down from between the peaks, several of them clearly in retreat. Grenzgletscher (Border Glacier) on the other hand, flowing around the right side of the Monte Rosa Massif, was clearly still feeding Gornergletscher, Switzerland’s second largest river of ice … even though the retreat of the latter has caused the connection of the two glaciers at the base of the massif to be replaced by a moraine.

     We spent about 20 minutes enjoying the scenery of the mountains and glaciers. We were so entranced by the view that we almost didn’t notice the changing sky behind us. Patches of blue were starting to make an appearance … the light was getting brighter … the sun was coming out.

    From our vantage point at the glacier overlook, we could not see the Matterhorn, but there was a good chance things were changing behind it, too. Walking around the side of an outcropping, we confirmed the change. Of course, we had to go back down to the Riffellsee for more reflection photos.

    The sky never cleared entirely, but we didn’t mind the ‘character clouds’ that actually made for more interesting photos IMHO. That said, we could have done without the one filmy cloud that stubbornly parked itself on the face of the Matterhorn.

    By the way, no Toblerone shot! We neglected to buy a chocolate bar to take with us when we impulsively changed our plans.    Les mer

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    Reisens slutt
    12. august 2025
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