<<"34 years! Impressive! I know, in Switzerland there's something new
around each corner no matter how often you come.">>
Actually, what I like a lot is somewhat the opposite. I can go back to the same inn with the same proprietor year after year, once I find one that I like. There are inns here and there with really good kitchens and good wine cellars, and some feel like home. Restful after a day of exercise. That is less true than it was in the 1980's and 1990's, because many inns have had a tough time, especially when the Swiss Frank became so strong, and things got more expensive for the citizens of neighboring countries. Fewer foreigners came to the towns near the borders.
Some inns seem to be surviving, however. And some of my favorites in the Emmental or on the Rigi are still there, and the proprietors and I have become acquainted.
In my favorite places it has taken me several tries over a few years with the trails and topo maps to find those hikes of varying lengths that I can walk easily and enjoy for the views or history. Also, to find which of the longer ones reward the extra effort. In that sense, there were and still are new discoveries right around the corner.
I have some favorites in the Emmental, and get good reactions from American friends, some of whom need easy trails, when we walk them. A very short easy one is from the parking lot of the Landgasthof Lüeg in Kaltacker, via the Wanderweg on the back roads and trails through Heimismatt and Gärstler down the valley to Heimiswil. There, I can catch a bus back to the starting point, where I have left my car.
Walks or hikes around the Napf are very scenic, and give views of the Alps from a distance.:
wanderland.ch/en/routes/etappe-0965.html
Another is one that I mentioned elsewhere. That is the well-known rail-trail beside the Südrampe of the old BLS train route as it descends into the Rhone Valley from Hohtenn, with my favorite part between Hohtenn and Ausserberg. I hope to walk it with my grandson in June. Almost always sunny. Includes a section alongside some of the Wasserleitungen/ bisse giving a good look at that centuries old technology for bringing water to the dry slopes of the valley.
valais.ch/en/experiences/bisses/bisse-du-milieu-and-bisse-vieux
myswitzerland.com/en-us/hohtenn-lalden-hiking-classics-on-loetschberg-mountain.html
One hotel whose closing was particularly upsetting was the Hotel Eiger, in Wengen. The rooms were not lavish, which kept the cost down I think, but Herr Fuchs had a really enjoyable restaurant, with an eclectic menu. He had a talent for finding good wines that were not too too expensive, as well. The views from the rooms were really stunning, and the location could not be easier to reach. 10 or 15 meters from the train station. Now it is an apartment building. The cafe in the lower floor was still pleasant, the last time we were there, but it was quite a few years ago. And, the kitchen no longer had that unique character that Herr Fuchs maintained..
A few pictures are attached . Most are from the Südrampe walk. Two are from the Hotel Eiger.
<<"By the way, there's an "Edit post" button above each of your own posts, so you can correct
typos if you wish.">>
Thanks. I need it. ;-)
