Gallery: July 10 — Lötschenpass: The Leading Edge

We did an epic twelve-hour hike over the Lötschenpass, which connects the Lötschental to the Gasteretal in the Berner Oberland. You can read a detailed description in the travelogue and appreciate it better with these pictures.

The high settlement of Lauchernalp, the starting point of the hike, in the early morning.

Up the valley.

New construction — Lauchernalp was, and maybe still is, growing rapidly.

Setting out.

A partial view down into the Rhône valley.

Atmospherics.

Hohe Kühe.

Another excellent lichen.

A lurking cow.

Violet & the Gentians.

Dad befriended a herd of sheep. Or was it the other way round?

Cragscape with the same sort of lichen all over.

There were some gorgeous diffuse clouds moving around above.

A view back to what we thought was the pass.

For a long time, the sheep continued along the hiking trail in front of me, thinking I was herding them.

In close view, the Balmhorn: do not fall on it.

The Ferdenrothorn displays some intense geological folding. Look closely and check out the ruddy strata writhing from the peak all the way down to the scree.

More gentians, with their unbeatable color.

Up near the pass, we had to walk across a number of snowfields. This was nothing compared to what we encountered after the pass.

Here is the pass hut now in view, a very welcome sight after the first false alarm.

The outhouse has this great window made of glasses.

An adorable Kachelofen inside the hut.

A picture of the hut being constructed decades ago.

The people who run the hut keep animals there, including this pig.

Closer view of the hut. Note how the clouds have gotten progressively thicker and lower over the course of the day.

Another shot inside the hut. Very cozy.

We ate lunch at these picnic tables outside, despite the brisk wind.

It was lunchtime for the chickens too, I guess.