Summer Holidays 2009

The Eggishorn Via Ferrata

Before we left Fiesch we decided that we had to experience the Eggishorn via ferrata. Having had so much fun at Murren it was another ideal opportunity to get the addrenalin running. Taking the cable car up felt sensible after the 1000m climb the day before but less rewarding ! Once the cloud cleared the view from the top of the station was stunning.

The start of the via ferrata was not far from the station. The walk to the start gave you more time to take in the incredible view that followed you ! With kit on it was time to step out into the unknown!

The via ferrata took you around the side of the mountain that overlooked Fiescheralp. The weather was not the best but added drama to the photos!

The first section was a series of metal gangways followed by a section that can only be described as a set a B&Q ladders suspended on a cliff!

B&Q Ladders!

The next section took you over a wire suspension bidge. The bridge itself was fine it was getting off the other end onto a vertical slightly overhanging cliff section that worried you more! Taking it in turns to pose for pictures we were soon half way through the climb.

The last section took you vertical up towards the cable car station, being so close allowed tourists to smile and wave across at you whilst you were trying to look cool, calm and collective whilst climbing a vertical set of ladders!                                                      

                                                  

The last section gave a fantastic view over glaciers and snow capped Alps. A visit to the visitors book ontop of a pinnacle was called for. After leaving the traditional Welsh message it was time to scale the last section of rock to the cable car station.

The via ferrata was certainly worth the effort. It was not technical and the views yet again were mind blowing!

Summer Holiday 2009

Mountain Biking Aletsch Glacier

We stayed on a campsite in Fiesch, the campsite was on the out skirts of the town and had excellent facilities.

The ride would start with a 1000m climb to Fiescheralp. With the sun burning our backs this was a testing start to the ride!


Fiescheralp was a quaint little Swiss mountain village typified by the wandering cows. A well earned drink in the village was certainly on the cards after that climb!

The ride traversed the mountain heading for a tunnel that would take us through to the Aletsch glacier. The riding was straightforward on trails that allowed you to enjoy the stunning vista all around.

The tunnel was 1 km long and with strip lights on the wall. Although lit it was still very interesting riding through trying to avoid the big pot holes!

Out the other side the view of the glacier started to show itself. We found ourselves in a valley surrounded by big mountains! To accommodate the weary walkers there was a restaurant which was surprisingly busy!

A trail led to the glacier itself and gave a fantastic view up to the Jungfrau, Monch and Eiger. The sea of ice was mesmerising. It was a view that you didn't want to leave!

We re- traced our steps back to the restaurant. The riding from this point became very technical. It was a basic mountain path that took you on the outer part of the mountain that the tunnel had taken you through earlier. The view was littered with glaciers and green alps.

A few sections had to be walked as it was not the time or place to be stupid or brave! Too many photo opportunities slowed the pace but it was so worth it!

As we looped back toward Fiescheralp we had two options for descent. The first was graded as black and took the line of the steepest part of the valley and the second was graded a red and had a mixture of piste and walking trails to offer.

Having spent just over 7 hours on the bike we decided to take the red option. We were so glad we did. The descent was one of the best we had ever ridden. It was technical, fast and great fun!

The final leg was a couple of km back through Fiesch to the campsite. We had had a great day with fantastic riding and the views to go with it! The campsite chips were well earned after this ride!!

Summer Holiday 2009

Travel Day

It was time to pack up the motorhome and make our way around the Bernese Oberland heading for Zermatt but stopping at Fiesch to check out the Aletsch glacier from a different angle first. Not wanting to waste a second of the holiday we decided to take in some of the tourist attractions along the way!

Trummelbachfalle
Glacial melt has carved its way through the rock to create a spectacular series of falls and tunnels. The power of the water was deafening and mesmerising

We worked our way from the top to the bottom always in awe of the power of each fall. This was certainly worth a visit to experience first hand the power of nature!

At the end the waterfalls the water quietly flows off towards Lauterbrunnen and beyond.






The Sherlock Holmes Experience
The weather was looking gloomy and wet but this did not deter us from our water fall experience! We decided to stop off at the Reichenbach falls which were famous for the death of Sherlock Holmes. Conan Doyle has certainly made an impact here and it is easy to see why!



We took the little cog railway up to the base of the falls, excited about the chosen way down! For an extra bit of money we could hire Trotti bikes to bomb back down the mountain!


We climbed our way to the top of the falls only to be greeted by cloud and a somewhat disrupted view! This just meant that we got to the bikes quicker!! Soon we were hanging on to the handlebars of a trotti bike zooming down the mountain !


We finished 500m from the car park in a thunderstorm! I learnt a very big lesson that day, never to wear cream trousers in the wet and never listen to H about whether we would need waterproof bottoms !! The soup and tea in the motorhome soon warmed us up and the laughter continued to the next set of falls and beyond!

Aareschlucht Gorge
This was not far from the Reichenbachfalle and was ideal for a wet weather walk. We walked through a series of tunnels carved specially to give a vantage point in the gorge.

We were greeted by waterfalls and a fast moving river that pushed its way with force through a spectacular gorge!

The walk took you through the gorge and back again making a very pleasant afternoon stroll !

Summer Holiday 2009

Via Ferrata Murren

The sun was shining and it was a great day to check out the new via ferrata at car free Murren. This was just a short cable car and train ride away from the campsite. The only problem was this was the same cable car as the Schilthorn which was an extremely popular tourist attraction. We quickly worked out that the people in the hour long queue were not going to scare themselves on the Via Ferrata! Apart from the rude Germans pushing in the queue and nearly starting a fight it was a pleasant wait in the sun!

After a well earned 'fitness platter' at a local restaurant we were ready to tackle the traverse!
The start was around the side of a tennis centre and gradually got you into the adventure!!



Views of the Eiger and the surrounding majestic mountains was second to none and kept your mind off the infamous bridge that was waiting at the end of the climb!

The via ferrata had everything from your wire bridges to long ladder pitches. It wasn't until we got to the first real stemple pitch that we realised we were hanging off the side of a massive cliff saved only by sure footing and a wire!

The via ferrata had surprises around every corner with waterfalls adding to the excitement. It was a challenge to keep the camera still when finding yourself in some compromising positions!

We then came to the end finale! The bridge that the lady in the campsite had warned us about! Having experienced via ferratas in the Dolomite's we were confident that no bridge would un nerve us! We were so wrong !.... H went first and found out that not only was the bridge long, high and unstable, it was also lacking in hand rails!! H was across first and finished with a smug grin realising that she could watch as I tentatively creeped along the bridge. The cable car down the valley runs very close to the bridge and it soon became clear that the tourists would have an entertaining view of anxious adventurers trying to cross this bridge!! In the middle I could not resist the opportunity of filming my precarious position! The result can be found on our flickr page! It was well worth the white knuckle experience!

A well earned coke in a wasp infested Gimmelwald was gratefully received! A bus back down the valley gave us time to reflect on the via ferrata that the lonely planet guide refers to as 'Switzerland's vertigo inducing klettersteig, sure to get the adrenalin pumping!!' We would certainly agree with this description !!