The Hills are Alive
Dear Friends--just got back from a trip to Switzerland, our adventure for this
summer. Getting there was somewhat of a hassle; we flew from DFW to LaGuardia,
then had to take a taxi to JFK in afternoon heat and traffic. We made our
connection on time, though, and arrived in Zurich on Tuesday July 9 in the
morning.
Limmat River
Zurich at Sunset
Zurich is a fascinating old European City. Cut in half by the Limmat River,
the old town is quaint with narrow streets and a landmark is the “Fraumunster
Kirche” (church) with stain glass windows by Marc Chagall (breathtaking).
Electric trolleys everywhere and a great “Bahnhof”(train station).
Trolleys
Bahnhof
Fraumunster
Chagall Windows
As usual jet lag set in for me, could not sleep the first few days so finished
up my vacation book, Clan of the Cave Bear. On Thursday we took the train to
Grindelwald, in the mountains, for three days of idyllic wonder. Our hotel was
old and picturesque, with geraniums in the window boxes on our third floor
balcony. (We did wash too, so the flowers had to share space with our wet
clothes. Our cache of local cheeses rounded out the scene outside our window).
Fiescherblick Hotel
The Eiger and Church
That night we had dinner in the hotel, which turned out to be a wise move. By
then I was getting desperate for sleep, so decided to have a glass or two of
wine. At 3:30 a.m.Friday morning I woke up with a pounding headache, soon
followed by a sick stomach. This day began Guy's 55th birthday and my only
wish was to live until daylight. By the grace of God, I rallied, and by 11:30
a.m. We were on a train to the top of Europe, Jungfraujoch.
The railway is built right into the mountain, and it slowly takes you to a
complex over 11,000 feet in the air. After a light lunch we walked onto the
glacier, the Grosser Aletschgletscher (largest in the Alps,22km). A vision of
heaven--snow and clouds. The day was clear and bright and glorious.
The Eiger
Aletschgletscher with Observatory
My Birthday
At 11,400 feet, Jungfrau Peak
We decided to take the train partway down and walk the rest. We had the path
mostly to ourselves until we heard the tinkling of cow bells (yes, they really
do exist). The cattle came right onto the trail, and although they are bovines
they hammed it up for our camera.
Hamming it Up
Typical House in the valley
We arrived back in Grindelwald at 6 and ate a quick meal, followed of course by
apple strudel and ice cream to celebrate Guy's big day.
Saturday we took our
first real hike, up a mountain to see the glacier of the Eiger. It was not too
hard, broke us in, (I thought), for the group hike that would start Tuesday.
Dinner at the hotel again, then Sunday on to Geneva.
Lè Jet, Geneve Waterfront
140m Famous Flower Clock
My first impression of Geneva was not wonderful, a big city, noisy and crowded.
Seventy percent of the Swiss speak German, but in Geneva the language is
French. Had dinner at a great Singapore/Thai restaurant, where we met a woman
who lives in Delaware but was born in Wilkes-Barre, where Guy's family still
lives.
Monday we got on the train to meet our group at the airport and first met
Kimberley, a 30 yr. old traveling alone. She grew up all over the world,
including Greece, Thailand and Indonesia, went to Brown to become an engineer,
then on to MIT grad school.
Soon met the rest of our hiking group:
Matt, a 19 yr. old college student from Atlanta; Buzz, a technical writer from
Virginia; then Dawn and Mike from Calif. Dawn is an ultramarathoner; last year
did a 100-mile race where she ran for 24 hours straight. Mike is a kayaker,
runs also. Ken, a trader from Chicago who has climbed all over the world, most
recently in Nepal, brought his 17 yr. old football player son Myke. Liz and
Lyle rounded out the group. Lyle is a former ice climber and marathoner. Our
guides, from Chamonix in France, were Marie, Stephane and Damien.
Stephane, Marie and Damien
The Group
We started our hike Tuesday morning at Les Ruinettes and spent the morning on
steep uphills and downs. Some scary places with rocks and wet grass, but we
managed well. Rainy and foggy with our first “col” (mountainpass under our
belts). Walked into the town of Siviez, our destination for the night. As we
walked down to the restaurant Dawn was coming back from her post-hike run.
Up from Les Ruinettes
The First Col (Fun? You Betcha)
Wednesday we started at a dam and ended at a dam, both shining examples of
Swiss engineering. It was raining lightly all day. We did not reach the col
(top of mountain) until after 2. The downhill was steep, and I found that
bringing up the rear had its advantages. Stephane showed me the edelweiss
growing up there, the white star shaped flower that Rodgers and Hamerstein
wrote of in The Sound of Music.
Several hours later we arrived at the Grand
Dixence Dam, and our stop for the night, the Ritz hotel. There was no town,
just the hotel where we first tried the swiss drink, Rivella. It comes in
three flavors, red, blue, and green. It is similar to ginger ale, but the
green is herbal.
Thursday morning we went back up along the dam to a lake. After going through
a series of tunnels, we had a fairly flat amble for a couple of hours. There
were lots of cows in the road with the accompanying tinkle of bells, mooing,
and piles of you know what. At a rushing waterfall we climbed a ladder to
begin our uphill swing, long and slow. After lunch we had to climb another
ladder, straight up to the pass, several hundred feet. I said a quick prayer
as Damien and Stephane gave me the heave-ho, and reached the top in 3 minutes.
Church at Dix Dam
My New Friends
Lac Dix, largest alpine in CH
By now it was sleeting and our guides' umbrellas came out. I had never seen
people hike with umbrellas before--just holding the thing would have set me off
balance, but Marie and Stephane moved briskly along with no problem. It was a
long downhill route to our next stop, Arolla. The weather continued to clear,
and by the time we reached the bottom the hills were definitely alive with the
sounds of my off-key singing.
We had a "penthouse suite" at the hotel in Arolla. It was on the top floor,
with a double bed (our first in Switzerland), a bathtub, an easy chair and a
chaise lounge. Slept like a baby that night, probably a combination of fatigue
and adaptation to the time change.
Sleet and Umbrella
100 ft. of ladder
Friday dawned bright and beautiful for our hike to Lake Moiry. On the way up we
met a young couple from Pittsburgh, both former lawyers (and they're only 28
now). The 360 degree views going up were stupendous. After reaching the lake
we stopped for a long lazy lunch. We all took off our shoes and luxuriated in
the warmth of the sun and the magic of the scenery.
Reluctantly we walked down to yet another dam, then a rocky downhill led us to
the picturesque village of Grimentz. As we walked through the town we saw plot
after plot of neat and orderly gardens, vegetables in the back, showy flowers
in the front. Towering mountains provided the backdrop to this idyll, and we
were treated to a spectacular color show when the sun went down.
Top Of Pass
Beautiful Rest Stop
Early next morning we were on the trail again, a steep climb interrupted by
some traverses. We stopped for lunch before the Fourclette Pass, but while we
ate watched other hikers attempt the steep ascent. Dawn went from valley to
pass in fourteen minutes, I made it in thirty-six, sandwiched between Marie and
Stephane.
Coming down it was windy, and after about an hour we passed from the French speaking part of the country back into the domain of German. Along the way we
met a farmer who yelled at us in German for interfering with the herding of his
cattle across the road. Marie gave it right back to him in French, noting that
it was a public trail and the cows were slow anyway.
Arrived in Gruben after 9 hours, a long day that left me exhausted but
exhilarated. Little did I imagine then that in 24 hours I would be completely
spent, physically, spiritually and emotionally.
Sunday was our last full day hike, and what a day it turned out to be. We were
climbing to the L'Augsbordpass (9550 feet), then down to a tram that would take
us to Zermatt. The hike up to the pass was long and steep, made more
challenging by the rain which started right after we left Gruben. I
inaugurated my rain pants, and we all stayed bundled up for the rest of the
day.
When we reached the pass there was no letup in the weather, but I mistakenly
thought the hard part was over. After a five minute stop to grab some food, we
spent the next three hours on boulders, gravel and slick mud. Stephane showed
us where we were to have stopped for lunch, pointing out the fabulous views we
would have seen. Unfortunately, it was so foggy we could barely see the ground
in front of us, so the day was dreary as well as difficult.
At two we finally reached the cable car that was to take us to the train that
would take us to Zermatt, but the operator would not come until three (he was
in his favorite bar and nothing, not even the pleas of tired foreigners, could
tear him away). Suddenly I realized that Guy was gone, and just as I was
beginning to get annoyed, he appeared with a plate of food. Endive stuffed
with tuna and salami with cheeses, nothing had ever looked so beautiful. As
luck would have it, there was a small bar nearby and we all trooped down for
hot chocolate.
This day was so wretched that no pictures could be taken.
The cable car held four people, so we arrived at the train station in batches.
I was thrilled to find a clean bathroom, something I don't see in many train
stations in this country. We all hopped on the 4:09 (trains in Switzerland are
very punctual) and shortly got off in Zermatt, where it was sunny and busy.
Zermatt is a ski town like Aspen or Vail, crowded with tourists and souvenir
shops, with fantastic mountains on all sides.
Only electric cars are permitted in Zermatt, but the drivers are a reckless
lot. They don't honk, so you find yourself scrambling to get away when they
are a mere 6 inches behind you.
Reached our hotel and practically ran up to our room. When I got undressed I
realized how soaking wet I was. In slow motion I set out my things to dry,
took a shower, and huddled under the cover for several hours. Guy and I had
dinner at a small Italian restaurant, pizza, pasta and rivella. As we walked
back to the hotel we could see the Matterhorn faintly through the clouds.
Woke up Monday morning to a clear sky. After breakfast we walked to the trail
for the last time, our goal to hike up and see the Matterhorn, then down
through the village of Zmutt, all in half a day. In town there was a monument
to a local man, a climber who has lived in Zermatt all his life named Ulrich.
He is now 101 years old, climbed the Matterhorn when he was 90. Inspirational
to say the least.
Zermatt Valley
Hiking to the Matterhorn
The hike was fairly easy (I'm so glad I brought my sneakers, my boots were
still full of water). We were rewarded by fantastic views of the Matterhorn as
the cloud cover slipped gradually away. Down we went through the charming
little hamlet of Zmutt, and back into Zermatt for an afternoon of shopping.
There is a cemetery behind the town church where the only people buried are
climbers who died climbing--it is a new project, and they were busy that day
cleaning off gravestones.
We walked through galleries and outdoor shops, souvenir stores and food
markets. We thoroughly wore ourselves out. Dinner was a festive affair, a
fond goodbye to our intimates of the past week.
THE MATTERHORN SUNSET
Tuesday was all hustle and bustle as we headed back to Geneva for our last
night in Switzerland. We walked around the city for several hours, had lunch
at a place called L'Armures, where the Clintons had eaten in 1994. We stopped
by Rohr's chocolate shop and made our purchases, then headed back to our hotel
by bus. After a light dinner we packed and went to sleep. Wednesday we
arrived at the airport at 6 a.m. took a short flight from Geneva to Zurich.
While we stood in line to get our seats for Dallas, Guy suddenly remembered
that he had left a bag with some pictures on the plane. Off we went in search
of them. Luckily we had a two hour layover, so we were reunited with our
prints in plenty of time to get back to our plane. Soon we were in the air
heading home. After eleven weary hours we landed at D/FW, tired but happy,
grateful once more for a lovely vacation.
Love, Guy and Susan
P.S. Boots after trek: