This was to be my last visit of this trip but I did not know that when I arrived at a town called Tasch, a 20 min train journey from Zermat, for 2 more adventures! Zermatt is a car and lorry free town, the only vehicles allowed at present are electric vehicles like milk floats but bodied as Taxi’s, Lorry’s, Buses and private cars. It was wonderful, the streets were busy with visitors and it was quiet! Above the town the views of The Matterhorn were magnificent. My first trip was to the top of Kleine (little) Matterhorn, a peaks standing at 14000ft and the highest point that you can get by public transport in Europe. Armed with my Ski pass it took just an hour to get to the top. The views of the mountains are to die for, I thought that the Jungfrau area was good, but this was just as stunning. At the top of the cable car many of the skiers went south to Italy. As I stood watching them, they all disappeared into a cloud bank that was fast approaching, and was going to end my journey, but at that time I still did not know that! The Matterhorn stands at 4478metres or 14691ft and the view of it was magnificent for 20 minutes and then it was gone! It was there one minute and the next the cloudbank consumed it in an instant!
The journey down was disappointing as for much of it there was no view, and, all the cable cars were packed with skiers and snow boarders coming off the mountain as Ski marshals shut the runs down.
Overnight 10cm of snow fell on the mountains and heavy rain buffeted the van all night. The morning dawned to thick cloud, no view and the weather forecasters predicting 4 days of bad weather. I decided to make my way to Lake Geneva about an hour’s drive away. I had hoped that losing height might improve the weather, I was wrong, from a shore side car park; I could not actually see the water.
Plan C was to go to Bern! But by the time I got there the rain was heavier than earlier. When all is going astray find a Mc Donald’s. No not for a burger, they have free Wi-Fi so a coffee lubricated a dry throat and the results of my own weather forecasting confirmed at least 4 days of wet, windy and cold weather.
I was told many years ago that when you have nowhere to go, you can always go home and so after several hours of debate I decided to call it a day, cut my losses and head home! Down, but not out, I am now planning my next journey, so watch this space!!!
