Pass after pass

We move on from Liechtenstein and continue to travel westwards Switzerland.

Come late September, Dora is up for sale.     If you or anyone you know is looking for a reasonably priced motorhome then please check out the following link; https://www.2wanderers.com/dora-for-sale/ or if you have any questions email us at; info@2wanderers.com Thanks

Giving up on the Via Ferratas in Brenta Dolomites has only encouraged us to do more. So last night, we looked for Via Ferratas in Switzerland. We found two, which luckily were located around the area where we were going to do some walking; the Valais.

The Valais is about 400kms from here and we have to cross a few mountain passes. Dora is not going to like this.

The pass names ring a bell. Suddenly we remember when we came to Vals a couple of years ago. For the second time, we visited this town to stay in the most amazing spa. The first time was the year before, in Summer. The spa has indoors and  outdoors baths. The views from the latter are stunning, imagine having a 32 degrees bath surrounded by mountains. We thought this view must be astonishing in winter, when the mountains are covered in snow. So we came back the following year.

It was at the end of that weekend that, with plenty of time to catch the flight back to London, we decided to do a detour and drive through mountain passes. But we couldn’t, the roads were covered on snow. We are here again, we have a second chance. We are so lucky  we have the privilege of coming back to places where we’ve previously been.

So we get on with our long drive. It would be nice if we could get to Interlaken today, which is the closest big town to our first Via Ferrata.

Soon we start to appreciate the Swiss alpine landscape; super-green, hilly, with scattered typical Swiss timber huts.

Imagine the whole of the valley covered on snow. There must have pretty harsh winters here. But there is no fuss, no disaster, the country continues to function, unlike the UK. When a few centimetres of snow falls in London, business losses can be counted by millions and the economy of the whole country is affected.

The weather has improved a little but it is still not great. Thick clouds cover the sky, preventing the sun from warming up the air. I’ve had to go back to my winter clothes, in August!

It is going to be another hard day for Dora. We have three passes to cross. The first one, Oberalpass, 2,044 metres.

 

This promises to be stunning.

We soon start to get those dramatic Alpine waterfalls.

And of course, the rail track. Switzerland has one of the best transport network in the world. The entire Alps is connected by an efficient, comfortable and rapid rail system, which goes up to 3000m. I imagine that, like everything in Switzerland, it will cost a kidney. We will be experiencing trains here when we climb Dufourspitze in the Monte Rosa massif. We will tell you all about it then.

The train is known as the Glacial Express, but express it is not, taking over eight hours from Zermatt to Davos, all those cogs obviously slow you down! GDR

The train has almost turned into a tourist attraction. Millions of people come every year to enjoy the Alps in different seasons. These trains take you everywhere.

And the Swiss have complied with the most amazing carriages, with large scenic windows which they somehow keep crystal clean so as not to interrupt that view, not the dirt stained windows you get elsewhere. GDR

The first pass, passed. It has taken us 1 1/2 hours to drive 60kms. It is now 16.00 and we have two more passes to go through. Our official time to stop driving is 18.30. I fear we may be sleeping at the top of one of these passes tonight. We have a problem though. Dora’s gas bottle marked empty this morning. This means no hot water, no cooking gas and no heating! Not an ideal situation to be at 2500m.

Anyway, we can do nothing but continue. We now go for the second pass: Furkapass, 2431m.

The highest and the longest.

The roads, although windy and slow, are a really good fun; the landscape changes at every turn.

And by driving at slow speed, you don’t miss any detail.

The scene is incredibly bleak; intermittent clouds cling around the highest peaks. The wind must be so strong, it pushes them quickly, creating a speeded-up movie. It is a shame, the intensity of the landscapes is not fully captured in the shots, although we have a very good camera.

We are going up there.

Would it not be nice to live in Switzerland, have the mountains at your doorstep, finish work on Friday and go out trekking for the weekend.

But maybe it is like in London, when it is on your doorstep you rarely use the facilities. GDR

Valley after valley, pass after pass. The driving is tiring but the scenery is incredibly rewarding.

From the top, the road looks like an scaletrix track.

We obviously didn’t come that far when we try to drive through the pass in winter, although keeping these passes clear of snow could be incredibly costly to maintain. But then, they could charge people an astronomical fee to go across. That is what the Swiss do for everything they sell anyway.

We are almost there Dora.

And here we are. A few cars  have stopped to take a few photos. So we do, and quickly we go back to Dora, it is freezing and we have to hurry up, we have another pass to cross.

The down drive is as slow as the up drive. You have to find the balance between using the engine and using the breaks; abuse the former, and the engine would heat up; abuse the latter and your brakes would become useless and therefore, dangerous.

The third and last pass of the day: Grimselpass, 2164m

Sharp bend coming up. Another motorhome is in front of us. This comforts us. We are not the only mad ones, perhaps we are.

This is just ridiculously beautiful.

Apart from a few big cities, Switzerland is all about mountains. They have the privilege of owning the highest share of the Alps and they certainly make the most of it. The countryside is packed with people. Winter is probably busier.

It looks like, the countryside is in permanent high season.

We are approaching 18.00 and we have not yet reached the top of the pass.

It could be a long and cold night.

But it will be worth it. We wouldn’t like to miss this wonderful scenery for the second time.

And here we are, at 2164m. However, we get no views, as the mist intense on the top of the pass.

Wow! a natural feature we haven’t had today; a lake, and a very impressive one.

With an unusual green-greysh water colour, typical of a melted glacier.

We are approaching the bottom of the next valley. It is 18.00, so we may not sleep in the mountains after all. Although it may not be a cold night, we still have a problem with cooking and hot water; the nearest place they sell LPG is Interlaken, two hours away from here. There is no way we get there tonight.

At the bottom of the valley, we go through a tunnel; extremely sophisticated, illuminated and well ventilated. Another area of Swiss expertise.

It is now 18.45 and we are 20kms from Interlaken. We have found a nice layby to spend the night, with a beautiful view of a waterfall in the background.

This also happens to be next to a military airfield. I thought the Swiss were neutral in everything, which is strange, we have seen a lot of military vehicles on the road. Maybe they are planning something! GDR

Here is a quick video we took of the drive today

 

 

With a lovely valley covered in wild meadow in front of us.

We are going to test Dora’s gas system by using it until it completely runs out, see how far it can go. We have a plan B if this doesn’t work; using the camping gas stoves. This wouldn’t alleviate the shower problem, but at least, we will be able to eat tonight.

SM.