Summer on the Glaciers

In general

A short vacation that allows you to discover some of the most fascinating corners of nearby Switzerland. Green valleys, imposing mountains, eternal glaciers, and as a backdrop the pleasant and well-kept Swiss localities, a sense of peace and tranquility even in the most frequented places, the order and efficiency of the services. Discovering one of the largest European glaciers, reachable with a comfortable train journey. And also trails that allow pleasant walks, until reaching one of the first national parks in Europe, the Swiss Park, created to safeguard the precious mountain fauna.

Zernez and the Swiss National Park

We cross Switzerland heading east, until we reach a remote little village in the Engadine: Zernez. The centre isn't much, but it's the gateway to the Swiss National Park, created to safeguard the precious wildlife characteristic of the mountains. A main road crosses the entire park, and by leaving the car in one of the many car parks, you can set off on walks suited to all levels and lengths. The trails and the views are similar to those you can come across in any mountain resort, but what makes this place special is the total absence of man-made structures, such as ski lifts, villages, houses. Moreover, some trails are educational, and now and then, from some signs found along the path, you can learn facts about the flora and fauna. In theory, it should be easy to spot deer, ibex, golden eagles, bearded vultures, but we only saw a couple from the car on the road.

It's easier, instead, to spot marmots. Crossing the tunnel that connects Switzerland with Italy, you reach Livigno, a pleasant little town for bargain shopping, and for filling up with fuel at a cheap price.

Interlaken

You are not mountaineers or climbers but you would like to observe uncontaminated glaciers up close, deep crevasses, and brush peaks over 4000 meters with one hand? In Switzerland there is a place that allows you to reach an immense glacier at an altitude of 3500 meters, simply by sitting down.... on a train! I'm talking about the Jungfraubahn, the highest railway in Europe, in the Jungfrau region. It is reached from Milan in about 3 hours of driving, entering Switzerland from Como-Chiasso. The journey is fantastic in itself: once past the San Gottardo tunnel, you face the climb to the SustenPass, 2262 meters, where you can observe enchanting green valleys, until reaching under majestic flows of ice with eternal snow. The capital of the region is Interlaken, a pleasant little town at 500 meters above sea level, with a large accommodation capacity.

From here, every hour or so, trains depart that allow you in just over 2 hours to reach snowy peaks even in mid-August. It's a circular route, which allows you to observe practically the whole valley, passing through localities famous above all for winter sports, such as Wengen and Grindelwald. To reach the famous railway, which departs from about 2200 in the locality of Kleine Scheidegg, you need to change trains twice, all clearly indicated. The last leg thus climbs from 2200 to 3454 in just under an hour. It feels like being on board a first-class airplane, with very comfortable seats and a monitor that explains the route and its construction, which dates back to 1890. The last stretch is entirely through a tunnel, so the route is passable even in winter.

During this stretch the train makes two stops: the first allows you to observe the whole valley floor, the second, fantastic, is a window carved sheer on the wall of the Eiger (one of the most difficult European peaks to climb), and offers an incredible view of the underlying glacier, with walls of perpetual snow up to 30 meters high. An indescribable thing (perhaps the photo below gives a better idea). Thus you arrive at an altitude of 3454, and here the Swiss have outdone themselves: practically inside the mountain the train station has been built; from here various routes and elevators always inside, lead to the various "attractions" of the Jungfraujoch: - Plateau: you go outside the station, the temperature is always close to zero in summer. Unfortunately the weather wasn't the best, and so, here's a snowstorm on August 5th.

Incredible to see the unequipped Japanese walking on the snow, - Back inside, you enter the ice palace: a long corridor entirely of ice (walls, floor and ceiling - see photo), leads inside the mountain, where life-size ice statues have been built. - Crossing the area of the bars and restaurants (also equipped with chopsticks and snacks for the unwary Japanese), also built inside the mountain, you reach the actual glacier, where you can do some atypical activities The landscape is spectacular, sometimes you walk between ice walls meters and meters high, or between snowy ridges that have detached from the peaks. - the last thing to do is reach the most panoramic point of the mountain: using an elevator that goes up more than 100 meters in a few seconds, you reach the highest observation point, at 3571 meters.

Here it really feels like flying and brushing the Finally the clouds also open up, and a pale sun warms us a little, and allows us to admire this unforgettable spectacle (unfortunately, it must be the altitude, the batteries of my digital camera ran out and I couldn't take photos from here, so I'll have to go back...). Unfortunately even the prices to climb up here are for "Japanese": the cost of round-trip train is crazy: 120 euros per person, although then, seeing the organization, the route and what they have built, you understand why it's so expensive.

Anyway by carefully analyzing the hotels of the region, you can find interesting offers: for example we stayed at the Blume hotel in Interlaken, using the special Jungfraujoch Package: one night for two people with breakfast + train ticket for about 240 euros, practically, considering the cost of the ticket of 120 each, we stayed for free. If you want to see the panorama from 3500 in real time, click on the web-cam of Jungfraujoch from this site:

Of course, real mountaineers reading this opi will be bewildered because they will say that the mountain must be conquered: I think so too, but I would say that in this case an exception can be made. Here are some useful sites for those who want to organize a vacation in this region: (site of the station at 3500 meters) (train timetables) (site of Interlaken with the hotels) (hotel Blume) So keep your fingers crossed and hope for good weather, because the success of this trip depends essentially on that. And please, don't do like the Japanese...COVER UP!!!