Saas Fee, Valais, Switzerland
We awoke to another beautiful morning, although there were a few more clouds in the sky than on the previous morning. We set off at about 8:30am, as we had about an hour’s drive to get to Saas-Fee. As we drove closer to the town, the clouds thickened ominously above the mountains. I began to wonder whether I should have brought another jacket and perhaps even my scarf!
We parked in the car park just out of the town, the township itself now being a car-free zone. A short walk took us to the information office where Astrid tried to obtain some information regarding the best cable car for us to catch. Again, we wanted to be transported up the mountains so that we could walk down again. Tickets purchased, we rode the first cable car. Realising that we actually needed to catch a second one, Astrid paid an extra €16 cash for each of us for the next ride to the man on duty who was only able to supply us with return tickets that weren’t actually validated. We were supposed to explain to his colleague that we had paid for a one-way trip for the next cable car, but when we lined up at the turnstile, the attendant had disappeared. We waited for a while, and then decided to simply climb over the barricade!
By this time, the clouds had dissipated, allowing the glorious sunshine to illuminate the amazing Fee Glacier. We spent some time marvelling at the view and taking many, many photos. Michael was rather excited to discover that free wifi was available, and so posted ‘live’ photos on Facebook.
We even made contact on Messenger video chat with Dad and Alisha, although it was hard to hear what they were saying!
The downhill walk was quite tough on the knees, but so much easier than an uphill hike would have been. We wound our way down the mountain, eventually reaching a large shallow lake where Astrid and Michael took off their shoes and socks to paddle in the icy cold water. Huge blocks of granite that had broken off as the glacier moved down the valley lay strewn around the lake. One could see how the coarser debris had been deposited further upstream, with banks of finer sand lying closer to the bottom of the lake where the water flowed into a river. The water raged down the river, reminding me of the furious rivers in Canada — if you fell in, you would most certainly drown!
By the time we had walked back through the town to the carpark, the clouds had rolled in. In fact, we saw some fork lightning as we neared the end of our walk. The storm forecast for around 4pm didn’t hit Saas-Fee until about 5pm, shortly after we had begun the return journey. It poured with rain all the way back to Erlen, stopping shortly after our return. The cooler temperature led us to dining inside for a change. Astrid prepared us a tasty cheese, egg and pasta dish, and Michael made us a fresh salad to accompany it.
Finally able to cool down our bedroom, we slept a lot more soundly than the previous two nights, although we still didn’t need any bed covers, other than a sheet (the quilt cover) for me.
Jo
2018-08-05
What wonderful pictures of such spectacular views. Hard to imagine it being so hot with the snow still around. Xxx Jo
Ian
2018-08-06
Another exciting day of glorious scenery in the mountains of Switzerland, this time showing your day tour of Fee Glacier. Your description of today's events in getting there and then your return to Saas-Fee, made this viewing of your photos all the more interesting.