Around the Western Alps
These are the notes from my cycle trip from 13. to 25. July, 2010. It took me 13 days of cycling. The laps in the table are put together according to topography, they are not necessarily my day trips. You see the complete route on a rough scale as the route 3940285 on Gmap Pedometer (the points connected by straight lines).
The route
| Lap | Start | Places en route | Route on Gmap Pedometer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Winterthur | Turbental, Wil, Wattwil, Kaltbrunn, Ziegebrücke | 3939879 | |
| 2. | Glarus | Klöntaler See, Pragelpass (1548 m), Muotatal, Schwyz, Brunnen | 3943436 | |
| 3. | Gersau | Beckenried (by ferry), Stans, Alpnach, Sarnen, Giswil, Klienteil, Glaubenbüelenpass (1611 m) | 3940145 | |
| 4. | Sörenberg | Südelhöhe, Salwidli (1316 m), Kemmeriboden (track), Schangnau, Schallenberg (1167 m), Steffisburg, Thun | 3943456 | |
| 5. | Spiez | Wimmis, Oey, Reidenbach, Jaunpass (1509 m) | 394652 | |
| 6. | Jaun | Euschelspass (1567 m), Schwarzsee, Plaffeien, Plasselb, Marty, Corbières | 394676 | |
| 7. | Bulle | Vevey, Montreux, Villeneuve, Aigle, St-Maurice | 3943777 | |
| 8. | Martigny | Col du Gd. St-Bernard (2469 m) | 3943806 | |
| 9. | Aosta | Châtillon, Verrès, Settimo Vittone, Andrate (836 m), Graglia, Occhieppo | 3943820 | |
| 10. | Biella | Valle Mosso, Borgosesia, Valduggia, Pogno, Omegna, Gravellona Toce | 3943850 | |
| 11. | Vogogna | Domodóssola, Crodo, Formazza, Cascata del Toce, Riale (track) | 3960771 | |
| 12. | Passo St-Giacomo (2313 m) | All'Acqua (track), Nufenenpass (2480 m), Ulrichen | 3943867 |
Places I've stayed at
| Lap | Contact | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gasthof Krone Rickenstrasse 9 CH-8722 Kaltbrunn +41 55 283 29 00 |
Low price, basic comfort. Breakfast not included, may take in confectionary opposite the road. The road is noicy even at night. People suggested the Guest House in Emetschwil but they had vacation. |
| 2 | hostel rotuschuo Seestrasse CH-6442 Gersau +41 41 828 12 77 http://www.hostelrotschuo.ch |
Efficient Youth Hostel on the steep bank of the Lake of Lucerne, with lake front. Mostly occupied by families. |
| 3 | Hotel Rischli Rischli CH-6174 Sörenberg +41 41 488 12 40 http://www.hotel-rischli.ch |
The most luxurious place in this trip. Wellness hotel, incredible fittings, great restaurant, very friendy management. |
| 4 | Jugendherberge Horbacherweg CH-3706 Leissigen +41 33 847 12 14 |
Cosy youth hostel with water front to the Lake Thun. Also mostly families. Next to the railway line, which didn't bother me. (Been there before.) |
| 5 | Camping Jaunpass CH-3766 Boltigen +41 33 773 69 53 http://www.jaunpass.ch |
Great panorama, very low prices. Above all the couple who run the place. We had a relaxed talk and exchanged books in their selfservice library. |
| 6 | Riviera Lodge Grande place 5 CH-1800 Vevey +41 21 923 80 40 http://www.rivieralodge.ch |
Very reasonable prices for a hotel next to the promenade of the Lake of Geneva. Busy place, great breakfast. |
| 7 | camping tcs Les Neuvilles CH-1920 Martigny +41 27 722 45 44 camping.martigny at tcs dot ch |
Typically for mobile homes and mobikes, have basic dormatories too. Various outdoor facilties. Next to a busy road. Run by a young team. |
| 8 | Hotel de l'Hospice
Col Gd. St-Bernard CH-1946 Bourg-St-Pierre (VS) +41 27 787 11 53 http://www.hotelhospice.ch |
Mediviel fortress style, romantic place, low prices, good food. |
| 9 | Hôtel Comtes de Challant
Fraz. Chez Sapin, 95 I-11020 Fénis (AO) +39 0165 764353 http://www.hcdc.it |
Small hotel in a very quiet place with lot of nature. Family atmosphere. Huge breakfast buffet! |
| 9 | Bed & Breakfast Sabrina via Pietro Micca I-13898 Occhieppo Superiore (BI) +39 015 2593759 bebsabrina at virgilio dot it |
Was happy to find this place in this sleepy town. It was raining since Graglia and getting dark. Keen land lady. Lovely Pizzaria around the corner. |
| 10 | Bed & Breakfast del Viandante via Nazionale, 270 I-28805 Vogogna (VB) +39 0324 87277 http://www.bbdelviandante.it |
Very few B&B en route from Gravellona Toce. Was happy after the long search. Young couple with babies in a beautiful house, bit sandwitched between the road and railway track. |
| 12 | Rifugio Maria Luisa Località Valtoggia I-28863 Val Formazza (VB) +39 0324 63086 http://www.rifugiomarialuisa.it |
The most romantic place on this trip. Found it finally at 10 p.m. in darkness and a slight rain. Was heavenly after the treacherous climb all the way from Domodóssola. |
References
- "Veloland Schweiz 4: Alpenpanorama-Route", Werd Verlag AG, April 2008, 61 Pages, ISBN: 3859325671 or online. Gave me ideas during the trip.
- Dres Balmer: "querpass, Mit dem Velo vom Bodensee zum Genfersee", 2009 Werd Verlag AG, Verlag velojournal, ISBN 978-3-85932-613-2. Haven't seen this before the trip. This has more interesting variations. Also the history and the anecdotes are well selected, in German.