We headed to Chamonix by train this morning from Switzerland. We intended to visit the ice cave as well as take the aerial tram up to the approximately 12,600 foot tall Aiguille du Midi. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to do all those things due to some unanticipated closures but still had a good time. We’ll have to come back to experience what we missed as well as other summer activities that weren’t available due to it being at the very end of the summer activity season.
Continue reading “Chamonix”Lausanne to Evian and Back Again
We headed out this morning from Lausanne in Switzerland to the town of Évian-les-Bains in France by ferry. Evian is the source of the world famous Evian mineral water. The water, from the same source, is available from free spigots in town! After walking around, enjoying the water, and having a bit to eat, we headed back to Lausanne again by ferry. Upon our return, we checked out the Olympic Museum and adjacent Olympic Park.
Continue reading “Lausanne to Evian and Back Again”Chateau de Chillon
We headed out in the early afternoon to the Château de Chillon, a castle near the town of Montreux on the shore of Lake Geneva. We were originally planning on taking the boat from Montreux but the schedule didn’t work out. We ended up arriving via bus instead. We took the audio tour of the castle and learned quite a few things! Much of which we have already forgotten… Hopefully what we did remember is correct!
Continue reading “Chateau de Chillon”Arapahoe Basin
We headed to Arapahoe Basin in the morning and arrived just in time for the 9am opening time. We took the Black Mountain Express chairlift up to mid-mountain and started hiking upwards. The plan was to make it to the new Steilhang Hut but we ended up going all the way to the Snow Plume Refuge.
Continue reading “Arapahoe Basin”Vail
Today, we headed over to Vail to do more high altitude hiking! We headed up one of their two gondolas and hiked to the other one along a route that went a few hundred feet further up before heading back down. We hiked further today than yesterday but it felt easier, likely due to both being about 1,000 feet lower in elevation and being a bit more acclimated to the altitude.
Continue reading “Vail”