A good day off

I think it is a reoccurring theme that I spend all my days off climbing mountains. Yesterday, Amanda's and my day off, we decided to do the following…

We borrowed lift passes from camp (which are used by the seniors) and took the gondola and then tram up to the Plaine Morte Glacier at about 9000 feet. The higher you go, the better the view gets, and l’Haute Route is traceable by eye. Starting with the Mont Blanc popping up as the highest mountain in the mess of others, and moving left to the Dent Blanche, Zinalrothorn, Weisshorn, Bishorn, Matterhorn… From there we hiked around the backside of the mountains that loom above camp. The glacier is exactly as it is called in French, just a flat plain of snow. In other parts where there were still patches of snow, we slid down on our butts, which is always a blast. It brought me back to my first butt-sliding-in-the-alps experience with Alain on our way down from the Mont Blanc. We stopped at the wielstrubel hut, and then continued down with beautiful views and good conversation. We dined on my favorite mountain lunch (bread, gruyere cheese, salami, and a cucumber) up on some rock in the valley behind the mountain range, completely alone. Lots of marmot holes, but the only animals we saw were a colony of snails. Continuing down, we descended to a glacial lake that is dammed at one end, Lake Tsouxier. We got hit by a clearing shower or two, but it’s hard to mind when there is still a magnificent view and the sun pops out shortly after. On the trail back to Crans, I decided to take a “shortcut” that cut through a cow field, which ended up turning into a mountain goat trail. Unfortunately, the cows weren’t up for kissing me, for the ceremonial first kiss I got from a cow in Switzerland when I was 8. The mountain goat trail turned into a bushwhack to get back to the normal trail, but it was completely worth it. The trail was long and went over and around a number of cliffs. 9 hours later, we were back in Crans to a hot sauna and a dip in the pool. My legs are still sore though.

Other than days off, life here has been ticking along, with Cairo quickly approaching. Last night we had a specialist dinner which is a once a year thank you from camp to the specialists where they feed us endless good food and wine. It was a black and white dress code. Buffet appetizer of fish, and steak fondu and French fries. Two days before that I also got invited to the Junior dinner – which means the camp likes me, because usually you are not allowed to go to two. The scene there was much more intimate with the junior section, and the food was amazing. Starters were tuna tar tar with avacado, followed by a filet mignon cooked to perfection.