The tragedy of life is not so much what men suffer, but rather what they miss. ~Thomas Carlyle
I came across this quotation the other day and it really struck a cord. I'm not overly fussed with only having one kick at the can of life, but I am terrified that I won't make the most of it. So, this past weekend, we decided to treat our visitors from Canada to the full Swiss experience! In my opinion, you can't come to Switzerland without experiencing Swiss Mountain Hospitality, and you can't leave Switzerland without seeing the mighty Aletsch Glacier.
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| This photo was taken a few hundred vertical metres from the top looking back towards the valley. The end of the glacier is visible to the right |
Now, I must be getting old because the last two years had completely dulled my recollection of just how spectacular this glacier (and the surrounding area) is. It wasn't until I rounded the corner and caught my first glimpse of this glacier that I was reminded just how fricking spectacular it is. The glacier snakes it's way down from the top of Jungfraujoch and eventually ends some 23 kms down the valley; this makes it the longest and most voluminous slab of ice in the European Alps. That's right Chamonix, eat your heart out!
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| I couldn't resist taking this photo. I know it's very stereotypical but I also thought it made a great photo. The Aletsch glacier starts approximately 20 kms up the valley at Jungfraujoch |
This year, unlike our previous visit to Bettmeralp, we decided to take the cable car to the top and walk down along the glacier. Although I much prefer ascending, taking this hike from top to bottom actually offers you better views of the glacier and still makes for an enjoyable hike. The first hour is spent descending down towards the glacier. You spend a considerable amount of time climbing through the remains of an amazing rock slide. All the while, what you thought was already a spectacular glacier just becomes that much more impressive. From the top, the ice looks smooth an uniform but as you get closer, you begin to realize just how jagged the ice actually is. For the truly adventurous, this first section of the hike can end with an up close and personal glacier experience!
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| Couldn't resist this one either. As we descended closer to the glacier the deep blue ice colour and ragged surface became much more apparent |
From there, after a short but steep ascent we treated ourselves to a nice apfleshorle and took the shortcut through the pedestrian tunnel. This likely saved us 2 more hours of walking but also came at a costs. We were not able to see the second glacier which isn't as big but still offers some spectacular scenery. Another 2 hrs and we were back in Bettmeralp trying some of the local Weiss bier! (wheat beer)
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| One of the million beautiful views in Bettmeralp. This chapel greets you as you arrive in town. |
All in all, the Aletsch glacier is truly one of the most amazing experiences in Switzerland. It is only a three hour train ride (door to door) from Basel making it possible to visit here in a day (a long one!). Now, what Swiss weekend experience would be complete without a little adrenaline? For three years now I've been dying to ride a pimped up scooter down a mountain. Fortunately, Bettmeralp offered me this opportunity. Two of us rented these scooters and made our way down from the top gondola station to the middle station in about 20 minutes. It was by far, the best 6 francs I have ever spent!
So, if the tragedy of life is leaving stones unturned then at least i have a few less today then I did when this weekend started.
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| There is always time to goof around |
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