Tête de Balme

4:12 / 48 miles/ 1450 ft. Fully, Switzerland 🇨🇭. I got up about 7:30 AM to say thank you to Brian again before he went off to work. We both had a good nights rest, and we knew, even though there pass was behind us, the day was still going be a tough because of the rain and headwind. Lisa slept in a little bit later, but we both joined Marji for breakfast and coffee at about 8:30 AM, and then the departed about 9:15 AM. We can’t say enough about how great our evening and morning was Brian, Marji, and the kids. Our destination for the day was Fully, Switzerland and another Warmshower stay. Even though the weather was not cooperative, the ride was still beautiful. We rode up onto the hillside through the vineyards that were full of purple and white grapes, ready for harvest, found a waterfall that somehow I did not route us by, rode through pear and apple orchards that were luscious with ripe fruit, and Barron apricot trees that had already been harvested. We also rode along the Rhone river that was raging with glacier water and heavy rain water. We stopped at a bakery and grabbed some sandwiches for lunch, and found a place under a tree out of the rain to enjoy our picnic. the temperature was cold, but we had enough clothing to stay warm. Karine our Warmshower host sent us a couple of nice videos explaining how to get into their house if we arrived before they were home. Just as we were retrieving the key from the mailbox, her husband Boris showed up and greeted us with a big smile! We talked with Boris for about an hour before taking the shower. Then when Karine came home, Lisa and her took about a 45 minute walk with the dog into the vineyards on the hillside side. Karine, Boris, and the boys filled our night with stories, great food, and laughter. Another truly amazing connection with our hosts and Lisa and I Couldn’t stop talking about how wonderful experience it was and how we were sure we would be close friends if we lived in the same area. more stories to come about this, but too long to explain in writing.Read more