The Jura Mountains of Northern Switzerland – le Chasseron

One of the most enduring memories of childhood holidays to the alpine regions  was that wild and relatively unpopulated area of forested, mist shrouded hills that we passed through on leaving the lowlands of France and before sighting the high peaks of the Alps.

The Jura Mountains run along much of the Swiss frontier with eastern France and their unspoilt nature has changed little since those early visits. It is the largest area of forest in France and some of the valleys do indeed resemble those of the Alps further to the south though the mountains themselves are pastoral and pleasant rather than imposing for here are no 3000 metre peaks to challenge the hiker; indeed the 2000 metre contour plays no part on maps of the Jura. What the traveller will find however is a timeless country with family friendly mountains, tumbling rivers and beautiful lakes set in deep forest. In short nature as it was intended.

Typical landscape of the Jura looking towards Lac St Point from Grand Taureau

The highest of the Jura peaks is the Cret de la Neige (1718m) overlooking Geneva in the South while other notable summits include Chasseron, Chasseral and Mont Tendre though their names are little known outside of France or Switzerland. The closest to our base of Pontarlier was the Chasseron (1607m or 5273 ft) which rises above St Croix just over the border in Switzerland. So it was on one day in August, here that we headed for a mountain adventure complete with four year old Daniel and one year old Benjamin in his buggy.

Following the minor road to Les Rasses and Hotel Chasseron from St Croix soon brought us to a left turn for the hotel which led up through forest to emerge in open meadows above. This is as far as you can drive unless you are a guest of the hotel to where a dirt road continues beyond the gate. This gave Benjamin’s buggy no problems and brought us to the hotel on the end of the summit ridge of the Chasseron.

The summit plateau of Chasseron in the Swiss Jura

The view from the summit of Chasseron north into France

The views across Lac de Neuchatel towards the distant Alps are awesome though the shining snows of the Bernese Oberland appeared somewhat faded by the summer haze. Beyond the hotel, an easy path (though not for buggies) leads to the summit in five or ten minutes walk to reveal a sheer drop off that comes as a surprise after the easy terrain so far. Don’t let the kids run off ahead here! The view north towards France is across a beautiful green and forested valley towards Pontarlier and the plain beyond while all around are the verdant hills that typify the landscape of the Jura Mountains.

Pete Buckley April 2013

The summit and the limestone cliffs on the northern side of Chasseron

Looking towards France from the edge

Views of the Grand St Bernard

The four travellers made their way slowly along the rough path that climbed gradually across the steep mountainside. They had been going for several hours and all were weary as they stumbled on the stones and the ground frozen iron hard by the wind. It was early November and the landscape was painted by new snow; indeed more was on the way and the harsh rocky peaks that towered ahead were beginning to fade behind a mass of drifting flakes in the rapidly approaching storm. The wind was bitter from the North.

The travellers were making their way from Aosta in the Italian valley of the Dora Baltea to the township of Martigny in the Swiss canton of Valais. They were Gabriel Verdano and his wife Maria, both of Aosta; Roberto Mauriello also of Aosta and Gaston Dubois of Courmayeur who was acting in part as guide for his companions having made the trip across the Alps several times by both the Col Ferret and this, the Col du Grand St Bernard.

The travellers tightened their hoods as, on passing a wall of rock, the north wind hit them full in the face. It wasn’t far to the pass now but nothing could be seen ahead other than the white blur of windblown snow. Even the path was starting to merge into the rapidly whitening ground and if they didn’t find shelter soon they would surely perish… then there was something else ahead – the guide saw it first and then the others – a light shining through the storm and guiding them onwards towards safety…

View into Italy from the Grand St Bernard

The lake between Switzerland and Italy

The hospice astride the main ridge of the Alps on the Col du Grand St Bernard or Great St Bernard Pass was founded in 1049 and has provided shelter to travellers between Aosta and Martigny since ancient times. Today a road crosses the eight thousand one hundred foot elevation; the only road to cross the Alps between Mont Blanc and Monte Rosa while nearly two thousand feet below the crest, a tunnel has since 1964, avoided the main pass which can be closed by snow and avalanche danger for six months of the year.

The hospice today on the frontier ridge at 2469m altitude

The road on the Italian side descends beneath jagged terrain

Trails lead off into the surrounding mountains; notably to the Col de la Fenetre, a hikers pass between Switzerland and Italy, but the main tourist attraction here are the St Bernard dogs which are still in residence. Until recently they were used as rescue dogs and the image of the St Bernard carrying a barrel of brandy is still an Alpine icon even in these days of avalanche transponders and locator beacons. Today they pose nonchalantly for the tourists who arrive in hoards in the summer. Stray just a little way from the road though and this place is revealed for what it is – the top of the Alps – and looking across the rugged terrain to the awesome views it is easy to imagine the St Bernard in the days before the road; and the travellers who came this way when it was still an expedition to do so.

Pete Buckley Feb 2013

Cnicht – the Matterhorn of Wales

Sunday evening and a succession of Atlantic depressions are bringing in a light but steady rain from the West that manifests itself on the window as I begin writing my first post in ages. Above the sound of the rain, my favorite radio show plays – hi Julianna and Ashley all the way over there in Middlebury Vermont – while the reasons for my absence from this blog; Daniel and Benjamin are both now asleep upstairs.

In view of the weather I think this one should feature lots of sunshine so I’ve dug out some photos of a short trip to North Wales we did at the end of summer.

The shapely form of Cnicht – the Knight – seen from the Croesor path

The southern Snowdonia peak of Cnicht is an eye catching feature when seen from the lowlands between coatal Portmadog and the Pass of Aberglaslyn. A steep and rocky demeanor belies its modest altitude of 689m or 2265 ft and it is much easier to climb than it is to pronounce correctly. Indeed Cnicht; whose name means “the knight” is often referred to as “The Matterhorn of Wales” due to its shapely conical appearance.

Looking back down Cwm Croesor towards the sea near Portmadog from the summit of Cnicht

From the charming Welsh mountain village of Croesor a signed path leads to the summit along an interesting ridge and a steep rocky path though the route is without difficulties and as far as the summit, remains obvious requiring little in the way of route finding.

Snowdon (left) and Crib y Ddysgl the two highest mountains in Wales seen across Llyn yr Adar in the high country behind Cnicht

Another aspect of Cnicht seen from a tarn on the plateau at the head of Cwm Croesor on the way to Moelwyn Mawr

A curious thing I found here was that despite this being my first visit to this valley and mountain, the area seemed strangely familiar. This was because it was the setting for one of my favorite childhood stories; The Shop in the Mountain by Showell Styles which featured a teenage boy and his sister who move to North Wales from Birmingham and come to be at home in these mountains. The author incidentally, at one stage held the record for the fastest ascent of Cnicht from Croesor.

I don’t know whether he still holds the record but it was under no threat from me as I made my leisurely way to the top in sunshine that would do justice to a Mediterranean island. Beyond the summit the character of the terrain changes and one looks out over a vast high country scattered with lakes and small crags where I stopped for lunch by a remote tarn with views to Snowdon before carrying on to Moelwyn Mawr across the valley.

Pete Buckley November 2012

Travels in Wales – along the Elan Valley

In the hills of Mid Wales there lies a beautifully scenic valley that forms a natural way from the market town of Rhayader into the wild heart of the Cambrian Mountains. The Elan Valley contains the reservoirs that supply the distant city of Birmingham with water yet depite Man’s presence here it retains an air of unspoilt calm especially in its upper reaches where the lakes and moorland are watched over by the keen eyes of the buzzard and the red kite.

Caban Coch; the first of the dams along the Elan Valley Trail

A minor road does follow the lakes’ shores but far and away the best way to see the area is from the Elan Valley Cycle Trail, a 14km (just under 9 miles) family friendly bike route that follows the full length of the valley from Rhayader to the dam at Craig Goch Reservoir.

Five hundred metres from the centre of Rhayader on the B4518 signed Elan Valley (car park on the right) the trail crosses the road and begins up a short hill. The route is signed Aberystwyth – being a section of the recently inaugurated long distance trail the Lon Cambria Cycle Route – and Elan Valley. There are no problems with route finding; it’s just a case of following the track and enjoying the pleasant rural scenery which is about to get a whole lot better.

After 5.5km the Elan Valley visitor centre is passed – the trail is well marked onto and across the access road – and we begin the ascent to the Caban-coch reservoir (256m/840ft) with the dam seen ahead and a rugged hillside rising to the Right. The ascent of 50 metres or 160 feet is gradual and easier than it appears from below and you are soon riding alongside the lake shore which is followed around a headland and past where a long road bridge is seen to cross the reservoir. This goes to the Claerwen Reservoir but the traffic free Elan Valley Cycle Trail keeps on beside the Garreg Ddu Reservoir towards wilder looking country up ahead.

Typical Mid Wales scenery along the shores of the Garreg Ddu reservoir from the Elan Valley Trail

Here the traffic free trail follows the shoreline towards the end of the Garreg Ddu reservoir and into the Cambrian Mountains

After a couple of miles of pleasant effortless riding through increasingly beautiful surroundings, the trail crosses the road and heads up another gradual incline into the forest that cloaks the hillsides ahead. As with the ascent to the last dam, this is another gradual ascent on an easy forest trail that passes a cabin before emerging at the top of the dam holding back the smaller Penygarreg Reservoir (alt 289m/948ft).

After the Garreg Ddu the bike trail crosses the road and climbs through the forest towards the Penygarreg Dam

Climbing – again gradually – the trail now heads above the wooded shores of Penycarreg towards the spectacular dam of the highest reservoir – the Craig Goch. The views start to open out into the surrounding hills until this is reached in a little under two miles. The car park at Craig Goch Reservoir (alt 319m/1047ft) is the end of the Elan Valley Cycle Trail though the road across the dam is the continuation of the National Cycle Network Lon Cymru Route to Aberystwyth.

From the dam the Elan Valley Trail gradually climbs above the Penycarreg Reservoir and the views begin to open out

Beyond the Craig Goch is wild open country and the true nature of the Cambrian Mountains is revealed as a high plateau country into which the valleys cut rather than the soaring peaks seen further north in Snowdonia. If you’re on a mountain bike there’s a rough trail beyond the car park that heads higher into the hills; I followed it for a kilometre or so and thus far was an excellent ride with wonderful open views. A look at the map reveals that it goes in about 4km to the road that could be followed back to Rhayader though as we had to go back to the visitor centre it was not to be. If anyone’s done it let me know!

Pete Buckley July 2012

The Craig Goch Dam seen from just before the end of the Elan Valley Cycle Trail

The wild beauty of the Craig Goch reservoir and the Cambrian Mountains of Mid Wales

The Last Snow of Winter

Towatds the end of March of this year, I headed over the fells above Whinlatter Forest near Keswick just as dramatic skies raced in from the North West and brought the last snow of winter to the mountains of the Lake District. We’ve had snow since – notably when I was camping with the family in mid Wales – but in the way of British weather, that was in spring though it didn’t much feel like it!

My plan had been to head to the fells above Buttermere but the snow had closed the Newlands Road that morning and I opted for a shorter walk from the far side of Whinlatter instead. With blizzards sweeping the hills through the earlier part of the day it was probably just as well.

This was an easy walk of about 9 miles that visited 4 of Wainwright’s hills; Lord’s Seat, Broom Fell, Greystones and Barf and provided some beautiful views that were given a touch of the dramatic by the atmospheric conditions. This is what weather forecasters refer to when they talk about snow on high ground.

Whinlatter Pass was passable with care and this was the scene that greeted me on commencing the walk

The Loweswater Fells appear dramatic in the snow showers. This was the region I was originally bound for.

Lake District weather is nothing if not varied but most of the heavy showers – which were snowstorms up here – passed to one side and left me in peace

Looking towards Skiddaw. The threatening skies were never far away but only once did I ned to take shelter.

In the clear spells the views extended across the snow free lowlands of West Cumbria to the Solway Firth and Scotland.

Looking south from the top of Lord’s seat to the mountains of Central Lakeland

Skiddaw appeared of Alpine proportions from the mists across the valley of Bassenthwaite. Bassenthwaite Lake itself is unseen behind the hill called Barf in the foreground.

What a difference a few hours makes – Lord’s Seat seen at the end of the day from the Darling How track where I had started the walk that morning in snow and grey cloud. It was now positively spring-like!

Pete Buckley May 2012

Winter Landscapes of the Lake District

The slope stretched interminably away up in front of me. Distance was deceptive and I as paused at a rock protruding through the snow it became apparent that it was much further from the ridge above than it had appeared to be from below. My uphill progress was an effort; a step forward, sinking knee or thigh deep into the soft snow then having to extricate oneself only to repeat the whole process again. It was easier than in the valley though where there were streams running beneath the snow that remained invisible until you broke through their white camoflage and had to leap from the hole before the icy water penetrated boots and gaiters.

Challenging was the word I sought, but I was inspired to be here as I looked around at the white mountain tops like sugar icing across the valley I had just left and the sparkle of the countless snow crystals where the sun shone on the slope ahead. The mountains west of Keswick were now in sight across the white expanse around Calfhow Pike; I was getting higher but the ridge still seemed an age away…

Looking back to Clough Head and Blencathra from the snow slope

I had set out from High Row near Dockray in the north eastern corner of the Lake District, for Great Dodd which along with Clough Head marks the northern end of the Helvellyn Range. The route – for anyone who cares to repeat it – lay along the track known as the Old Coach Road which links Dockray with St Johns in the Vale, for 4km or two and a quarter miles before branching left up a vague boggy path which today was hidden under the snow. It is signposted to Calfhow Pike and follows the river of Mosedale Beck though after my encounters with several lesser streams beneath the snow I opted instead to head straight up the slope on the left to the cairn on Randerside.

Looking east from just below the summit with the Pennines on the horizon. Ullwater lies beneath the mist in the valley below

A wintry view of skiddaw from near the summit of Great Dodd

From here I would follow the wide ridge to the summit of Great Dodd at 856m or 2809 feet; a variation on my original plan to first ascend Clough Head (726m/2382ft) from the highest point of the track and follow the ridge around but it is January and it gets dark early here and the effort of walking in 40-60 cm of snow tends to slow the pace somewhat.

The view from the summit is always worth coming up for and today it was more than ample reward for the extra effort walking through the snow. Skiddaw and Blencathra to the North took on an alpine quality in their snowy garb while in the other direction the wide ridge – itself one of Lakeland’s great walks – stretched away towards the icy peak of Helvellyn in the South. A thin haze had spread into the west heralding more snow to come and this gave the western peaks a monochrome gloomy air but east across the Eden Valley a temperature inversion obscured the lowlands beneath a layer of cloud and fog and the eye was drawn to the Pennines around Cross Fell – their highest point – which seemed to float on the mist like distant islands on a calm sea.

Between the Cumbrian Fells and the Pennines a temperature inversion covers the Eden Valley with mist

The summit cairn on Great Dodd was a cold and lonely place today with Skiddaw beyond

South from the summit along the ridge to Fairfield Catstycam and Helvellyn

I admired the view all around until the cold began to penetrate my jacket and it was time to go. For a shorter way back I followed the tracks north east down the wide ridge back to join the Old Coach Road much nearer to its start point and where it is signposted for Great Dodd.

Pete Buckley  Jan 2012

A Walk from the Top of Europe

Outside the rain is coming down with a renewed sense of purpose and the wind is threatening to carry away anything that is not tied down. Inside, my four year old son re-enacts episodes of Fireman Sam and Lazy Town while I finish off the final pages of my first novel. The other day I asked myself whether Colonel Medev – one of my main characters – would venture out into the hills in weather like this and the answer was simple; of course he would. I therefore did just that but mist and rain do not make for good photos! Here instead then is the walk from Jungfraujoch to the Monchsjoch Hut 12000 feet up in the Bernese Alps on a glorious summers’ day a couple of years back. There was plenty of snow though…

Jungfraujoch station is marketed as the “Top of Europe” by Jungfraubahn who operate the line and is the highest main line railway station in Europe. The platform lies at an altitude of 11333 feet or 3454m above sea level and is reached by a fascinating tunnel through the solid rock of the Eiger.

The station reminds one of an underground town with shops and restaurants for those who have any money left after buying their ticket and for those who don’t – provides access to the wonderful winter world of the high plateau at the top of the Aletsch Glacier between the 4000m peaks of the Monch and the Jungfrau. The sublime mountain views are free.

The last time I’d been here a blizzard had raged across the high mountains and my walk to the Monchsjoch Hut had become something of an adventure in arctic conditions. Even the huskies that give dogsled rides to the tourists had all been indoors. Today though as I emerged from the tunnel  the conditions were a little more benign than last september – the sun shone from a deep blue sky, warming the snowy plateau to a balmy three degrees above freezing and the wind was presumably battering some poor hiker in the Scottish Highlands or some other far off place.

The station had been busy today so I’d made good my escape even resisting the temptation of the Indian restaurant – these are a rarity not to be passed up in Switzerland – and even though the 26 franc price tag for my favorite dish did not put me off the queue did!

Looking down to Kleine Scheidegg and Interlaken from the Jungraujoch Ice Plateau

From the Sphinx Observatory hikers can be seen following the pisted trail to the Monchsjoch Hut which is just around the corner in the gap

The gently rising trail to the Monchsjoch Hut lies for just over a mile across a permanently snow covered glacier and is pisted in the same way as a ski run as well as being marked by poles. The track is crevasse free but not so the surrounding glacier so it is important to stay on the path if you are not roped up and remember that you are walking on ice and not solid rock. These ice fields are amazingly up to 800 metres thick in places and feed the Aletschgletscher – the longest glacier in the Alps at 22 km or nearly 14 miles.

Today I passed several people making their way to the hut who appeared to be struggling. It was the snails pace and zombie like expressions that told me who had come straight up from the lowlands without being in the hills recently. I’d been walking to around 2500m the day before and was still short of breath – these people clearly hadn’t ventured above Interlaken until today. The town’s at about 500m while the Jungfraujoch is 3450m and the Monchsjoch 3650m – a height that passenger aircraft are required to be pressurised or carry breathing oxygen – a little acclimatisation is certainly desirable before coming up here, if you want to enjoy it that is! I watched as one group turned back apparently exhausted for the station.

The peak of the Jungfrau (4158m) seen looking back from the early part of the trail

The views here are simply stunning with the Aletsch Glacier leading the eye southwards between rugged slopes towards the distant Pennine Alps across the unseen Rhone Valley while the Jungfrau towers beyond the area of the unseen station in steep rocky steps above the snowfields.

Looking down the Aletschgletscher or Aletsch Glacier which is the longest in the Alps

Approaching the Monchsjochhutte or Monchsjoch Hut which sits at 3650m - pretty much 12000 feet above sea level just east of the Monch (4099m)

The walk seemed shorter than I remembered – probably because of the weather – and the hut was soon in sight perched just beyond the lower end of the South East ridge of the Monch. That is the normal route to its 4099m summit but though not far, it is not without difficulty and a guide is to be recommended for less proficient climbers such as the author. The view opened out from the hut and immediately on its far side was a steep drop to a wide plateau of snow with distant blue mountains rising beyond the multi peaked top of the Wetterhorn itself at the same level as the hut. To the right and closeby rose the icy crest of the Fieschhorn though the Eiger was hidden behind the eastern slope of the Monch.

Beyond the hut one is almost level with the top of the Wetterhorn (3704m) with the Schreckhorn (4078m) on the far right

The shapely peak of the Gross Fiescherhorn (4049m) rises immediately beyond the hut

I bought a drink in the hut – tea in a bowl which is how they serve it in the huts – then sat outside in the sun enjoying its warmth and the wonderful high mountain environment around me. People milled around the hut as more struggled up the easy snow ramp leading to it bemoaning the lack of air. How different it was from last september when there had only been 2 people here – myself and the warden of the hut – and the challenge was in finding the route not a place to sit. Amazing views today though.

I made my way back to Jungfraujoch easily enough and having missed out on a curry was sorely tempted by the summer skiing – 33 francs including hire of skis. The run was a gentle easy slope which is about my standard – and a button lift pulled people back up to the start. I decided to save my money though and investigate the Sphinx Observatory and viewpoint – the silver dome I had seen about 400 feet above on a rocky tower which is accessed by a lift from the station. The lift is free and rises at terrific speed in a rocky shaft – actually 6.3 metres per second which is fast for a lift – to the observatory.

The exit at the top of the lift is into a large room with glass walls and the view from here – though at 3570m slightly lower than the hut – is even more far reaching. A vast drop off close at hand to Interlaken and the Brienzersee – or Lake of Brienz – glittering below the cloud layers 10 000 feet below. Range after range of lower mountains spread out to the West while in the far distance hazy hills marked the Jura and southern Germany’s Black Forest maybe 100 miles away beyond the green Swiss Mittelland. On the other side in great contrast was the Aletsch Glacier leading down from the world of ice immediately below.

The view from the Sphinx Observatory 3570m. Here the Bernese Oberland drops off 3000m or 10000 feet to the lowlands of central Switzerland

Outside the floor is one of those see through vertigo-vision metal ones that add to the excitement of walking above the void below and the whole structure is surrounded by a network of cables which were being used as perches by the ravens. I wondered what these were for then realised they were protection from lightning. Storms are frequent here and this faraday cage would prevent lightning hitting the observatory – or worse – anyone stood out here.

Time to go down and I had a quick look at the Eisplast or Ice Palace and the Ice Plateau both of which which me and Dad had visited when we came up on a family holiday when I was 9. The plateau seemed much smaller than I remembered though the view was still stunning. The Ice Palace was just as cold as I remembered – perhaps -10 degrees being under the glacier – and is full of ice carvings some very intricate. There are similar man made ice caves at Klein Matterhorn above Zermatt and at Mittelallalin at Saas Fee and on the whole I would say that the one at Jungfraujoch is the most extensive and impressive. With that I went to board my train down from this land of ice and snow to the green meadows and trees of summer in the valley below – having missed out on a curry I would have a pizza in Grindelwald sat outside on a terrace in the sun before I walked back up the hill to my hotel.

Pete Buckley January 2012