SnowSlider - Blogging From the mountains by ise

click on photo’ to enlarge

Originally I’d planned to go to climb the Giferspitz but that’s it in the centre of the above photo’ with the top covered in cloud. So we decided to take the much easier option of walking from Zweisimmen to Schrönreid which is basically a tour along the top of that part of the Gstaad ski area. It’s an easy walk and takes in the Hornberg which has a nice restaurant at the top. I’ve done some a more strenuous hike from here towards Lenk in the past : Zweisimmen-Lenk

I skied here a lot in the past mostly during the 2005-2006 season and was lucky enough to experience probably the best season they’d had for 30 years or more. There’s many, many pictures in the blog : start here

Read the rest of this entry »

click on photograph for larger version

Last year we had some incredible early season conditions around Gstaad, early season kicked on 26th Nov (here) and by December it was just great skiing ( here ), this year it’s not quite as good though. Last year I’d got a season ticket for Gstaad but this year we’ll be based up in Zinal and we’re taking season tickets there so I expected to have to pay full price for a day ticket today. However, we got day tickets for 10 francs each courtesy of “Blick” a Swiss-German newspaper who were running a promotion, as the paper is only 3 francs a copy we effectively got tickets for 13 francs each and they gave us a couple of bars of chocolate each and a new lift pass stringy thing.

Read the rest of this entry »

click on photo’ for full size version

There was some fantastic autumn weather over the weekend so we went up to the col des Mosses for a walk. The route was fairly simple, to leave La Lécherette and walk up on side of the pass before crossing at Les Mosses and climbing up to the top of the La Lécherette ski station and descending to the village.

Read the rest of this entry »

Zweisimmen-Rinderberg-Rüwlispass-Türli-Stübleni-Leiterli-Lenk

click on photo’s for full-size version

The plan today was to leave from the train station at Zweisimmen and ride the lift up to Rinderberg, from there to climb the remaining distance to the summit of the the Rinderberg and head for Lenk. From the Rinderberg I headed for the Parwengesattel passing the top of the new ski lift from above St Stephan. After the Parwengesattel I leave the lift system of the Gstaad area behind and head into the space between Gstaad and Lenk.

Read the rest of this entry »