After Christmas I used my time to relax a bit, practice and travel. I've now been to Zurich, Sion, Montreux, Nyon and Caux, as well as many small villages around Lake Geneva (called Lac Léman by the Swiss) like St. Prex thanks to a good friend who shares my enjoyment of travel and has a car! My visit to Montreux (the home of the famous jazz festival) was particularly interesting, because I was still a bit sick but had attempted to plan a hike. It is known as part of the Swiss "Riviera" because of it's oddly warm climate which allows palm trees and the like to grow in view of snow and ice. Of course it is winter in the mountains, so I was advised that hiking would not be possible due to snow, despite the fact that it was supposed to be in the high 40's that day. So I set out on the train, planning to explore the town and take lots of photos and that would be that.
After a half an hour or so of walking around the western half of the riverwalk I decided to go to the old town and almost immediately found a small stone stairwell leading up through the old homes and vineyards...
The next thing I new I was hiking through vineyards, forest, a river and eventually a snow-capped mountain. It was thrilling, beautiful and serene, though by the end of the day my body was not so thrilled. Turns out hiking in snow and ice (not to mention the roughly 45 degree angle) is a little rough on the stabilizing muscles of the legs even if you are in decent shape...
(Palms in the foreground, and snow in the back. Notice that castle-looking buildilng at the top?)
By the end of the day I had hiking for about 4-5 hours through every terrain imaginable, sometimes on roads, sometimes on paths and sometimes in foot-deep snow. I had also climbed roughly 700 meters or 2,300 feet. The great thing about hiking in Switzerland is that there are many national and regional paths that are marked well and intersect often.
Words can't really describe the experience of hiking this particular mountain (though I find this is generally the case with mountains) because of several factors: 1. The weather in the valley which contains Montreux is very different from that around it, and because of this there are very unique cloud patterns which sometimes rise from the lake. Watching the clouds change from below, then within, then above is quite something.
2. The mountains seem to rise almost immediately from the water, so as you climb every time you turn around there is new, spectacular and different view. 3. There are several mountains right next to eachother which actually allowed me to start on one and cross a river which runs between the two to begin the climb on the other, which again afforded an entirely different perspective.
I was lucky to make it to my goal (the town of Caux) at 1,050 meters (halfway to the summit) before sunset. Remember that castle?
Eat that, Lord of the Rings.
gummygunk
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
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