Kilometres Walked : 16 km

At 4,478 Metres above sea level and it’s almost perfect pyramid shape it is perhaps one of the most famous mountains in Europe if not the world. And of course who doesn’t remember the Toblerone ad. Blessed with a big blue sky nice and early this morning we caught the Gondola up to The Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, the highest cable car station in Europe. (3,383 metres above sea level) We had to journey on a series of gondolas today which was an engineering feat in itself. Soaring high above the village of Zermatt first then over the mountains was absolutely amazing. It’s quite unbelievable how they even built it.

The views from the top were completely breathtaking. There is still so much snow and apparently people ski all year round up here. Who would have thought hey. Watching the climbers heading up Breithorn was just mesmerising. I really wished we were experienced enough and had the right gear to be able to head up. Sounds like a great excuse for another trip I think. This was just the start of a fabulous day. After having a great chat to a group of Kiwi neighbours we went in search for the Matterhorn Glacier Palace. Hopping in a lift we descended 15 metres underground to tunnels and sculptures carved into the ice. How clever and amazing indeed. They even had a tunnel/slide where all the big kids were having more fun than the little kids. (No we didn’t do it)

On the way back down we stopped at two of the stations to take more photos and have a little wander around. From Schwarzsee you can walk up to the Matterhorn but obviously there is way to much snow at the moment and to reach the peak you need to be a professional climber. We were more than happy to wander around the base for a little while then make our way to Furi where we then opted to walk back down to Zermatt. We were literally walking through the quintessential Switzerland. There was just to much cuteness and to finish off the day we were lucky enough to watch a small herd of absolutely beautiful cows with their big cow bells on move through from one field along our walking track to a nearby barn. What a special treat for us.

Such an amazing day and feeling very grateful we had big blue skies all morning before the clouds came over and covered The Matterhorn. We didn’t really know what to expect here at Zermatt but I can definitely say it’s in our top five of prettiest places we have been to so far.

Kilometres Walked : Friday 9.6 km, Saturday 6.5 km

Saturday 17th June, 2023

If you are ever in Switzerland and have the chance to board the Glacier Express, do it! The Glacier Express starts it’s journey at St Moritz and continues it’s travels over 291 kilometres with 291 bridges and 91 tunnels. At an average speed of 42 kilometres an hour, it is the slowest fastest train ride in the world at 8 hours long. We took out a second mortgage so we could spoil ourselves and travel in excellence class. And I can tell you it was worth every cent. With our armchair seats, 6 course degustation with perfect pairing of wine and first class service for the entire 8 hours we rolled off the train this afternoon.

Now the photos definitely can not do the scenery justice. The 8 hour journey flew by due to the fact that the scenery was completely jaw dropping. Mountain Peaks soaring high in the sky, glacial waters rushing down the valleys, the cutest Swiss timber houses with their quintessential window boxes, rolling green hills and of course thousands of wild flowers dotting the fields. Of course we forgot to take photos of any of the food. I can tell you though it was delicious and all the wine was fantastic.

We didn’t take to many photos as we were just enjoying not only the views but also the food. Arriving at Zermatt we literally rolled off the train into another alpine paradise. With completely different architecture to St Moritz and a completely different atmosphere we are super excited to see The Matterhorn and The Gornegrat and get some hiking in.

Kilometres Walked : 24

Flights Climbed : 190

Thursday 15th June, 2023

Another big day on the trail’s yesterday. Our goal was to climb as high as we could near Piz Nair. We didn’t get all the way to the peak as there was to much snow on the tracks but we were quite proud of the height we reached. At about 2800 metres we felt like we were on top of the world and at the same time on a completely different planet. We decided to actually stop at Heidi’s Hut on the way this time. What a cute little timber hut it was. You can just imagine it surrounded by snow in the winter, and then surrounded by all the crocuses popping up in the springtime.

Then the ascent began just behind the Signal Gondola Station. We slowly wound our way across the hills spotting plenty of the crazy Marmots and stopping regularly to enjoy the expansive views. What hilarious little creatures the Marmots are. They made us giggle on a regular basis along the way.

After winding our way around the side of Piz Nair we came around the final bend and there was Lake Suvretta. Wow, it was still mostly frozen and quite a lot of snow was sitting around on the trails. What a spectacular sight. The rugged peaks surrounding the lake and us were like somewhere on another planet. It was just truly breathtaking. A lot of these tracks are for the Mountain Bikers as well. Talk about extreme sports and extremely fit. It’s certainly not for the faint hearted.

From the lake we started to climb once more in the direction of Piz Nair but didn’t get very far as there was still to much snow over the tracks. But at 2800m (9100 ft) we were very pleased at how far we had come. There was even a ski chair lift at what felt like the middle of nowhere but I guess during ski season it would be very busy. It was hard to believe that everywhere we had been walking would normally be blanketed in metres of snow. What a spectacular sight that would be.

What an incredible place St Moritz is. Even though we didn’t make it to the top of Piz Nair we had a fabulous time hiking. The Gondola that takes you up there is closed until the end of the month so we couldn’t get up there that way either. We had the most amazing time. You just become mesmerised by the scenery and you can’t help but just stop and perch on a rock and stare in wonder at the surroundings. It’s a very magical place. The rugged snow capped mountain peaks, the delicate and beautiful wildflowers, the very funny & cute Marmots, the tall swaying pine trees, the stunning scenery and the beautiful alpine architecture. We felt very grateful to be able to explore the area as much as we did.

Kilometres Walked : 18

Flights Climbed : 97

Wednesday 14th June 2023

Not really having much of a plan in mind today we set off to find the Shellenursli trail and Heidi’s Flower trail which started at the base of the ski slopes. The tale of Shellenursi (A Bell for Ursli) remains one of the most popular children’s stories in Switzerland. And although it is set in Guardia in the Lower Engadin, the custom it describes is known throughout the region: every year during the traditional ‘Chalandamarz’ children ring the large cow bells to drive away the winter. The trail has numerous timber carvings and tells the story along the way. It was very well done and the chainsaw work was fabulous. The Heidi trail is also to do with a famous children’s book, you guessed it- Heidi! I have a vague memory of this book as a child but it is also one of the best selling children’s book in Switzerland and the hut from the TV series adaptation is along the track. By the way, we didn’t see Heidi!

After having some fun with timber carvings on the trails we noticed a few different signs and headed off in the direction of Alp Suvretta. We thought we would just walk for a little while and then turn around and return. Well you know what we are like! Ooh that looks nice up there, let’s check it out and oh how about we just go to the next corner! And what a fabulous and picture postcard walk it turned out to be. We made it to Alp Suvretta and decided to go further but not as far as Pass Suvretta. Wow, the scenery before us was just breathtaking. We had to keep stopping to just take it all in and enjoy the natural splendour. The huge mountain peaks looked like something out of Lord of the Rings and delicate wild flowers dotted the earth around us. Alan the Marmot turned up, oh hang on it may have been Steve? They are just like the youtube video, we were having a good giggle watching them today.

The unplanned walks always end being the best walks. Once again the photos can not show what the scenery is like right in front of you. It’s just completely jaw dropping. I’m not sure how else to describe the raw beauty of the place. This is Switzerland!

Kilometres Walked : 20

Flights Climbed : 91

Tuesday 13th June, 2023

With grey skies looming above us we intended to just walk a lap of the lake and possibly do some more exploring around St Moritz, but halfway around the lake we noticed the sign for Punt Muragl and thought let’s just go and have a look. Punt Muragl is the start of the Funicular Railway that takes you on a 700m climb to Muottas Muragl where you have expansive postcard views over St Moritz and many of the main mountain peaks. Passing the small Lake Staz on the way we wound our way through magnificent tall pines and thousands of wild flowers. The photographs can not do them justice. With so many pretty colours it was just so beautiful. We were also lucky enough to see our first Red Squirrel. Neither of us had ever spotted one in the wild before so you can imagine how excited we were. But we weren’t quite quick enough for a photo🐿️

Surprisingly it didn’t take us as long as we anticipated to reach Punt Muragl. With the sky looking much more promising we threw the budget out the window and bought ourselves two return tickets for the Funicular as neither of us could be bothered to walk up or back down for that matter.

Whilst the weather wasn’t perfect, it didn’t rain and the grey wispy clouds were constantly moving so it felt like we were walking through a dream at times and then bang, out pops a mountain top. There was still plenty of snow lying around and we also managed to spot a few very cute Marmots. Another first for us. After a few kilometres of exploring around the top of Muottas Muragl we blew the budget even more and treated ourselves to hot chips and coffee at the very expensive cafe on top of the mountain. But hey, you only live once!

What a spectacular place. The beauty can’t be seen properly in the photographs. Gazing around in wonder we were just totally awestruck by the scenery surrounding us. Switzerland is just stunning.

Kilometres Walked : Saturday 7.2 km, Sunday 8.2 km, Monday 8.8 km.

Monday 12th June, 2023

The weekend was spent relaxing and recovering from Friday’s hike. With nice little meanders around the streets of Tirano we enjoyed looking at the beautiful houses and their gorgeous gardens. We are both definitely fans of Hydrangeas now. The colours are just amazing and so different with the blue and purple hues. It has given us lots of inspiration for our own garden and plenty of ideas of what will grow in our climate. Arrivederci Tirano it has been wonderful.

This morning with much excitement we boarded the Bernina Express for our journey to St Moritz in the Swiss Alps. The two and half hour journey took us on some of the highest railway tracks in Europe and the steepest. With wildly romantic gorges, unique bridges and tunnels, snow capped mountains, tall swaying pines and picturesque lakes we all had our noses stuck to the window in awe.

Wow what a beautiful way to start the day. With slightly sore necks from looking around so much on the train we arrived at St Moritz. St Moritz is an Alpine Resort in Switzerland’s Engadin Valley. Once the winter snow melts it becomes a Hiker’s and Mountain Biker’s paradise. With Lake St Moritz and snow capped peaks as our backdrops we are excited to get out there and hike over the next few days. The alpine architecture is again different and very beautiful with quintessential shutters and window boxes. Wildflowers adorn every sidewalk and paddock making it look just like the postcards. And yes the cows have cow bells!

Looking forward to exploring the streets some more through the week.

Kilometres Walked : 24

Flights Climbed : 140

Friday 9th June, 2023.

Our hike today led us over the border once again with our destination being Miralago and Lago Di Poschiavo. Setting off nice and early we started off on a steep ascent to the Romanesque church of St. Perpetua. With a big blue sky we were awarded fabulous views over Tirano and The Sanctuary of the Madonna of Tirano whilst also watching the Bernina Express head through on its way up the mountain.

Walking through some beautifully shaded forest through to the first village of the day, Campocologno which is also the border between Italy and Switzerland. Our path for the day was basically following the train line that the Bernina Express runs along albeit on structured paths and tracks but also passing through some very pretty Swiss villages. Brusio was the next village that we walked through which is also where the first big loop and viaduct is on the train line. We were lucky enough to see a train go by whilst we were walking past.

Whilst walking up through the lovely little villages full of Swiss houses with their window boxes full of flowers and pretty gardens was picturesque I can tell you I definitely found it hard going. I’m sure Jason mentioned there wasn’t going to be to much of an ascent😩 I didn’t even take any photos as I was just concentrating on getting one foot in front of the other. The scenery and destination made it all worthwhile though and with sore and stiff bodies we finally made it to Mirilago.

Well the effort of all those kilometres was well worth it. Switzerland is just beautiful and just like the postcards. With snow capped mountains in the distance and wild flowers in abundance and of course tall pines swaying in the breeze it is a very picturesque place indeed. With wobbly legs we opted to catch the train back to Tirano. (I don’t think we would have made it otherwise) A taste of things to come on Monday when we re board The Bernina and head to St Moritz.

Finishing on a high, we have completed our last hike from Italy. Next week we will begin the next adventure in St Moritz in Switzerland. We’ve hiked in some stunning places throughout Italy from the country to the seaside to the mountains. We have also been constantly impressed with the adequate signage on all of our walks and the upkeep of most of the trails. The scenery throughout has completely amazed us everywhere we have been and we look forward to returning in the future to complete more of the wonderful walking trails on offer.🥾

Kilometres Walked : 8

Thursday 8th June 2023

Giving our weary bones a rest today we had a lovely wander around the old area of Tirano and visited Palazzo Salis. Owned by the Counts S. Salis of Switzerland origin since it’s foundation. Once again we were wowed by the vaulted ceilings that are decorated with frescos and the beautiful old medieval furniture and of course the small but impressive Italian Garden.

We then enjoyed a meander through the old town admiring doorways, gardens and old stone buildings, some of our favourite things! What a beautiful place Tirano is.

Kilometres Walked : 19

Flights Climbed : 190

Wednesday 7th June, 2023

Watching the whispy clouds floating across the valley and swallowing up the snow capped mountains whilst savouring that first coffee of the day inspired us to walk right up into the middle of them. Heading straight up through the vineyards our first stop was Baruffini, one of the four hamlets of the Municipality of Tirano and located 800 metres above sea level. The immediate steep ascent up was beautiful but very hot once the sun broke through the clouds. Talk about getting our elevations up!

After a quick snack break at Baruffini we kept on to the next tiny hamlet call Piazzo at 940 m above sea level where we had lunch. Passing many massive Cherry Tree’s we were able to regularly snack on them along the way. Some of the tree’s must be at least one hundred years old, they are so big and they are literally everywhere. A great sugar boost for the constant ascent that we seemed to be on. Our original goal was to join onto another track from Baruffini and head back down to the other side of Tirano but we decided to keep going onto Sasso del Gallo along the old mule track that the Smugglers used back in the 60’s & 70’s to smuggle products like cigarettes, chocolate and beer across the border. The objective of the smuggling was to curb the number of locals who where choosing to emigrate by ensuring that the local economy could survive. The former barracks of the Financial Police still stands up there today (a fixer upper) and along the way up and back down we passed many old gun turrets and other ruined buildings.

What a beautiful part of the world. The scent of the pine trees as we traversed further into the alps reminded us of the old Norsca ads. Wildflowers were in abundance and full of bee’s and butterfly’s and yes today was our first time hiking in Europe that we have come across a snake. Not just one but three of them. They were quick to get our of our way but it still got the heart rate going, that’s for sure. Oh and yes one tick hitched a ride back with Jason. Another first!

With sore, stiff and tired bodies we slowly made our way back into Tirano this time through acres of Kiwi Fruit Vines. Wow they are all full of little furry baubles just waiting to ripen.🥝

Kilometres Walked : 12

Tuesday 6th June, 2023

Easing ourselves back into hiking we donned our boots and set off for a reasonably easy walk straight from the heart of town. Heading towards the train station and then across the Adda we followed a country road through acres and acres of apple orchids. Wow there seems to be more apples here than Stanthorpe! Our first stop was a tiny village called Colongna where we stopped for a short snack break before heading to the next tiny medieval village of Sernio where we stopped for lunch. Passing many more apple orchids and raspberries and blueberries and of course abandoned fabulous old stone houses that could definitely do with some renovation. Again flowers reign, roses, roses and so many beautiful roses in every colour. The intoxicating scent stopping me many times.

Making our way down to the Adda and crossing over we headed back to town along the path that runs parallel to it all the way. The water had that icy blue colour, so you know it is freezing but very beautiful.