Blogs from South-West, Switzerland, Europe

Leaving the campground in Val Veni after three nights in my tent, I rejoined the Tour du Mont Blanc where I had left it two days earlier, one hour down the road in the town of Courmayeur. But having dropped down into the bed of the Val d'Aosta (into which both the Val Veni and Italian Val Ferret flow) there was only one direction the trail could go: up. At first the gradient was gentle as the route followed a sealed road up a side-valley, but after leaving the road and heading up onto the forested flanks of Monte de la Saxe the steepness immediately ratcheted up a couple of notches. Yet fresh from a rest day I was equal to the task, managing to climb the 600m from the road-end to Rifugio Bertone in just ... read more

After the exertion yesterday it was time to leave Zermatt and head into the middle of Switzerland by …….. 🚅 We caught our first train via the wonderfully named Visp to Montreux. A brief wait then before catching the Golden Pass train to Zweisimmen where a replacement train then took us onto Spiez. This lovely town is situated next to Lake Thunersee and our hotel was a 10 minute walk - downhill 😉 - overlooking the lake. A beautiful location and our room had a balcony with a view of the castle 👍 2 nights booked here so we came up with a plan to visit Bern and Thun the following day. We had dinner in the hotel restaurant and a short walk to suss out boat times. After breakfast we caught the boat to Interlaken, ... read more

For 365 days of the year, the summit of Jungfraujoch is covered in snow. A group of us are going to the “Top of Europe”. It is a spectacular glacier and we can enjoy the incredible views! It’s another early start this morning. The alarm went off at 5:45, which allowed for a 10 minute snooze, which felt like I was actually sleeping in! I showered last night, and sorted all my stuff for today so that I could move myself with less hassle this morning. I do find that being prepared the night before helps with the early mornings! I was down for breakfast in good time at 6:30. At 7:30, we headed out for the journey up the mountain, which we are told, is a highlight in itself, providing panoramic views of mountains, lakes ... read more

Cooler weather is forecast but I’m not sure why it’s a forecast; it is cooler. We tidied up, put out the rubbish, and left Saint Remy in a car bulging with wine, food, gifts, clothes and essentials, and us. Wipers clearing drizzle have turned the windscreen into a grey, smeared rainbow, and I soon regretted not cleaning the screen. It was number 3 on my mental check list but was never checked off. Petrol stops are generally autopay, and rarely is there a bucket and squeegee, so I made do with my ever present handkerchief and my water bottle. We are hemmed in by steep , rock faced mountains, and are saving time by cutting through the mountains via tunnels. These can be kilometres long and are well lit up. Safer than the open road in ... read more

Really loving this location on Lake Geneva. This area on the north coast, eastern side is called the Riviera and it certainly has the feel of the French Riviera with a hint of Italian Lakes 😊 It was chilly in the night. The season definitely changed with the falling first snow of the year and the night temperatures from now on will be decidedly autumnal. Daytime is a different matter. Woke to glorious unclouded blue sky. Saw that several people on the campsite were pretty well dressed for winter but I took no notice and dressed in my sunny day outfit of suntop and shorts… and I didn’t need the cardigan I took out with me just in case 😊 We whizzed along the north shore of the lake towards Montreux and then carried on to ... read more