We left Argentière on Monday morning and drove a few minutes down the road to Chamonix. We wandered into town with the first stop being a jeweller to see if the beautiful engagement ring currently sitting in its box could be resized and placed on the correct finger. Unfortunately, the jeweller said it would take at least one week and might just be easier to get done at home (or in a bigger city) – all the sad faces.
We left the jeweller and quickly fell in love with the little town nestled in the shadows of Mt Blanc (Western Europe’s highest peak). The streets were lined with flowers, art, cafes and so many people.
It was still early in the day so we ended up being ultimate tourists and took a scenic train up to see Mer de Glace (i.e. one huge ass glacier on the northern slopes of the Mont Blanc massif). The $31.50 pp ticket got you the return train, some super sick views of a slowly melting glacier and the option to walk through said glacier (after descending 429 steps). All in all, pretty cool.
Once back in town, we took a short drive across the border into Switzerland and camped for free overnight in Spiez, a small town close to Interlaken. Hilariously, the carpark was right next to a church and the bells literally rang three times per hour ALL NIGHT LONG. Parking was free between 7pm and 7am so we were more than happy to pack up and GTFO come morning.
We drove a few minutes down the road to Blausee which is one place that had been on our list to visit since we started planning our trip. Entry turned out to be $8 swiss francs pp and we would recommend visiting every day of the week.
Blausee is basically a glorified pond, but the incredible aquamarine colour and clarity of the water will have you mesmerised. To reach the lake you also get to walk through a magical forest said to be the origin of fairies and we wouldn’t be surprised if they were right.
The gates open at 9am and we were basically there on the dot which was good as we avoided the crowds and the torrential rain. After a long coffee break, we hit the road again and headed to Lauterbrunnen (another high on our hit list).
When we got to Lauterbrunnen, the weather was terrible so we stayed overnight at ‘Camping Jungfrau’ which cost $48.40 swiss francs (ie. a lot). We made the most of free wifi for the first time in over a week and got cosy in the van for the night.
Note: the staff at this campsite could not have been more accommodating and due to the supremo location in the Swiss Alps, lots of hiking related information and discounts were provided.
We woke to some clear skies and had to be out by 10am so showered (for the first time in a long time), packed up and drove 30 seconds up the road to park Peggy for the day. We walked into town which took about 10 minutes and started a popular introductory hiking loop from here.
The cable car left from Lauterbrunnen and headed straight up the mountain to Grütshchalp. From here we walked to Mürren (completely car-free village) then onto Gimmelwald before getting the cable car back down to the valley floor below.
The views of the surrounding mountains were amazing, with the intermittent cloud and deer sightings making it a bit more mystical. The photos don’t capture the extent of the Jungfrau nor the 72 waterfalls that ring the Lauterbrunnen Valley, but we had an awesome day getting lost in it all.
We got back to Peggy mid afternoon and left Lauterbrunnen, heading south in search of the Matterhorn (another of Europe’s most popular peaks). The weather got a bit crazy (snow forecasted in August?!?) and we pulled up at probably the worst place imaginable – the summit of Grimsel Pass; 2164m elevation with no shelter from the howling winds and wave after wave of creepy fog.
Overnight parking is quite common here (not really sure why) and cost 10 swiss francs which was payable at the restaurant (could use their facilities and got your 10 francs back if you spent 30 or more on food/ drink).
Safe to say we were eager to get off the top of the mountain in the morning but the weather didn’t improve once we got below the clouds. We pulled over and made the decision to bypass Zermatt and the Matterhorn in search of more sun and salt which we would surely find in Italy, right? The drive took most of the day (avoiding toll roads = tiny villages with equally tiny streets) but by late afternoon we were pulling up in a small carpark in Casella, just north of Genoa.
Come morning, we continued our search for the sea and ended up in a little village called Santa Margherita Lugire – a small town located on the same peninsula as Portofino. We didn’t have a spot picked out but luckily noticed a few motorhomes parked near a sporting complex when weaving down the mountain.
We stayed here for 2 nights and each night cost 10€ (no facilities). For a first real taste of Italy, it was perfect. A small, colourful town with winding alleys and eateries lining the streets.
We took a little day trip on Saturday and biked along the coast, stopping at small bays and beaches along the way (in effect, becoming master rock climbers) before reaching (picture perfect) Portofino. We wandered around the port before stopping for gelato (obviously) and partaking in some glorious people watching (dog in pram, anyone?).
Note: Only local residents are authorised to park in Portofino and considering the bike ride only took about 30 minutes, we were in a good spot.
We left Santa Margherita Ligure on Sunday morning and drove through Le Spezia to the Cinque Terre. Again, we didn’t have a camping spot picked out and our general vibe at the moment is just drive around until we find something suitable.
We landed a pretty decent park just outside of Riomaggiore (the southern most village of the Cinque Terre) which also happened to be free. We decided to leave the exploring until Monday morning so had a beer and watched the sunset instead.
Until Week Eleven. Arrivederci x
Another gem!