August
26, 2016 – When my sister was visiting us last summer (can't
believe this was 5 months ago at the time I am putting together this
album!) with her two youngest boys (16 and 18) we took them all on a
couple of nice hikes like the ones we often do...
But
the boys, not really seeing the point of hiking or mountains in
general, soon got tired of this, so on this hot hot Friday we decided
to leave them alone at home to build with Lego, and we procured a day
pass for the train for Andrea, whose last train trip in Switzerland
was about 25 years ago, and we mapped out a trip that would take us
through as much of our gorgeous country with a variety of landscapes
and languages and architecture somewhere where she had not yet been
before.
Our
trip started at 5:45 in the morning, and took us South to Canton Grisons to travel with the Rhaetian
Railway through the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Albula Valley
with its myriad of bridges and tunnels and railway loops, then
through the Engadine (St.Moritz area) over the Bernina Pass and into
the Poschiavo Valley and across the border into Italy. Altogether we
traveled over 500 km, spent 13 hours on the train and made three
stops of one hour each: For a cup of coffee at a village high above
the Poschiavo Valley – to get there we did a side trip with the bus
along hairpin turns; for a gelato in the Italian city of Tirano just
South of the border; and at Lago Bianco (White Lake) near the Bernina Pass on the way
back home....
It
was a wonderful day, lots of sunshine and comfortable temperatures compared to the excessive heat in the North because we were at higher elevations. Only once on our approach to the Poschiavo Valley it
looked like we might hit the “fog”, but that dissipated once we
got there. The driver of the bus/van to the village of Viano was a
friend of ours, so Andrea got to ride in the passenger seat for a
frontseat view. When we boarded the Panorama Wagon in Brusio, we had
it all to ourselves, what a treat! And on the way back we upgraded to
1st Class for a stretch and got to ride in front near the
locomotive driver. All in all, a super cool day!
And
the apartment was still intact when we returned... and the boys had
even cooked their own lunch!
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We traveled over 500 km and spent 13 hours on the train. |
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Near Landquart before the Albula Valley |
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Landwasser Viaduct, always exhilirating! |
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Village of Bergün in the Albula Valley |
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After the Albula Tunnel, the train goes over the Bernina Pass |
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On the way to the Bernina Pass, we pass the Morteratsch Glacier and the Bernina Ridge |
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Crossing the Bernina Plain |
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Across the Bernina Pass |
Lake Bianco at the Bernina Pass drains on both sides: One side into the Adriatic, one into the Black Sea.
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Crossing the pass we zigzag down into the Poschiavo Valley: It looks like fog! |
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Those open air Panorama Wagons look like fun. Hope we get to ride in one later. |
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Down in the Poschiavo Valley, the clouds are gone and the sun is shining. |
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Along Lake Poschiavo in the Poschiavo Valley |
This is the village of Brusio. We took a break here to catch a Post Bus (or van, in this case) to experience narrow roads with hairpin turns up to a small typically Swiss-Italian village called Viano, perched on the steep mountainside high above the valley. There are many such villages up in the hills and the drive is always an adventure.
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Waiting in Brusio for the bus to Viano |
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Waiting in Brusio for the bus to Viano. This was our cool conductor in the train, we called him Massimiliano. That was not his name though. |
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The real Massimiliano, a friend of ours, drives the Post Bus here, and Andrea got to ride up front. |
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The village of Viano is perched high above the valley. |
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To get to the village of Viano we have to drive a road with many hairpin turns. |
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In the village of Viano in the Poschiavo Valley. |
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This is the view North into the Poschiavo Valley: We came down from the Bernina Pass back there somewhere. |
We had an hour in the village of Viano before the next bus back down, so we had a cup of coffee at a quasi-restaurant, well it was more like a private residence where the owners provided coffee and light meals out of their own kitchen!
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Coffee Break in Viano, Switzerland |
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Coffee Break in Viano, Switzerland |
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After an hour, Massimiliano picked us up again to head back down to the train station in Brusio. |
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This is the Brusio Viaduct, the next exciting part of our trip |
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Waiting for our train in Brusio: It has an open panorama wagon. YAY! |
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Not only did our train have an open wagon, it was pretty empty so no competition for window seats! |
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On the Brusio Viaduct, a 360 deg railway loop to get the descent required to continue on Southward. |
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Looping back on the Brusio viaduct, this is the town of Brusio. |
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Heading across the border to Tirano in Italy, here the train and automobiles use the same road... |
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Madonna di Tirano, the cathedral in Tirano, Italy, just South of the border. |
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In Tirano (ITALY!) we had an hour to walk around a bit and enjoy the popular Gelato. |
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And now it's time to head back home to Zug! By now we've been on the road 9 hours already, and have another 7 hours ahead of us |
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Heading back northward up the Poschiavo Valley, we pass over the Brusio viaduct a second time (no open wagons this time) |
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Heading back northward up the Poschiavo Valley, we pass over the Brusio viaduct a second time (no open wagons this time) |
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As we head back up toward the Bernina Pass, there are views South along the Poschiavo Valley, to Italy at the back. |
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Just before Lake Bianco, this side valley is one we've hiked twice before. Below the glacier at the back (Palü Glacier) is a beautiful little glacier lake. |
The train winds North along Lago Bianco toward the Bernina Pass. The train station here is the highest train station (altitude) on the Rheatian Railway line (2250m / 7380 ft)
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We have another hour to take a break, so we are going to look for a good place to sit at the lake. |
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The Bernina Express (popular with foreign tourists) is just making its way past. |
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Our final one-hour break at Lago Bianco, near the Bernina Pass, altitude 2250m (7380 ft) |
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The water in Lago Bianco is very cold! |
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On the way back we have upgraded to 1st Class for a Driver's view (for about 1/2-hour) |
Heading back past the Morteratsch Glacier. (There are ALWAYS people at this corner taking photos of the Red Train, because the cars have to stop at the crossing. Everyone loves the red Rhaetian trains).
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Glimpse into the Morteratsch Valley to the Morteratsch Glacier |
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Time to change trains in Pontresina. Our way back takes us up the Engadine Valley, a different way home. |
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Our trip home is along a slightly different route, along the Engadine Valley, and through the Vereina Tunnel. |
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Our trip home is along a slightly different route, along the Engadine Valley, and through the Vereina Tunnel. |
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No photos of the boys, but this is what they built while we were away.... |
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