Mice in Switzerland, the Other Cheese Country! (page 6 of 19)

Okay! How long is the walk to Lac d'Arolla?

About 1h15 from Arolla via Pramousse and around 45 minutes from La Gouille.

You can find info on this blog: https://www.novo-monde.com/lac-bleu-arolla-randonnee/

Oh yeah, I know about them! It depends on where you are, though.

Stopped in Olten here. Not much to see except the bridge and a couple of streets. But it's lively! !

The heat isn't helping us for what's next... No problem for the Rhine Falls, that'll cool us down 😅

But for Zurich tomorrow... Actually, I haven't even checked the easiest way to get there

Unusual discovery on the road!

Thankfully there’s the flag—otherwise I’d have said: too far, turn back!! 😄

Thais really like Switzerland. Members of the royal family used to study there... and there are plenty of billionaires who have their hard-earned savings stashed in Swiss vaults, with Buddha’s blessing!

No way! I checked, never in my life

I don’t find it that exposed... Lots of families do it with kids. Check this one out, it’s way worse 😉 https://www.anzere.ch/fr/experiences/au-fil-de-l-eau/se-balader-le-long-des-bisses/le-grand-bisse-d-ayent-3231

But if you get vertigo, there are other bisses to try that aren’t as high up.

That’s already too much for me 😅

A few days in Valais would be nice, depending on the weather.

Lake Arolla is really beautiful! Is it less touristy over there?

I’d love to stay in the Bernese Oberland someday, but it seems complicated...

Well, we have to leave the apartment, but it’s hot out—doesn’t make me want to go for a walk 😅

Personally, there was no one around—we had the lake to ourselves! We got there before noon. Early birds win! 😏

The late check-in too 😴

Those beautifully blue lakes really make me dream 🐄

The one in Arolla is truly stunning with the surrounding landscape (I prefer it when there are trees 😇) But seeing both would be great!

Well, I’m not there yet...

We crossed the Rhine to enter Germany! First time I’ve slept there, third time I’ve set foot in the country. Once by car and once on foot before this! Still, not much time to visit Germany except for Constance, I hope.

We made stops in Aarau and Baden.

Huge hassle to park in Aarau: everything is paid 24/7 😲 Sorry, but it still shocks me—it doesn’t exactly make you want to linger at a restaurant, for example.

But the real issue was that it was impossible to pay by card, and my app wouldn’t work.

So we didn’t pay 🤷‍♀️

Quick tour of the center—super cute but not very big! Well, statistically, that limits the chances of getting fined...

Ended the day in Baden, also small but charming, and had dinner at a Filipino snack bar, mostly just for a change! Swiss food isn’t bad, but the menus aren’t very varied. Otherwise, there’s pizza... It’s repetitive! And not exactly light... So yeah, it was a chance to eat something different.

At least the drive between the two places let us discover some small Swiss towns. Well, it already looks like Germany! 🖋️

Baden

I just checked the routes for Evolène or Moiry: it's too far from where we'll be staying, so if we can't find accommodation closer, we won't go...

I really like the game "find the mouse" 😛

Huge hassle to park in Aarau: everything is paid 24/7 sorry but it still shocks me—it doesn’t make you want to linger at a restaurant, for example.

I spent whole days there without ever paying...

You just need to move away from the city center and walk a bit (or take public transport). In Aarau, there’s a "big" parking lot (never full except just before a match) in front of the Brügglifeld stadium (FC Aarau’s stadium), and it’s free.

In Switzerland, it’s pretty easy to park for free or for less than 10 CHF a day. You just have to avoid the very center or head toward football stadiums. Usually, there are free or very cheap parking lots nearby.

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Big hassle trying to park in Aarau: everything’s paid 24/7 😲 Sorry, but that still shocks me—it doesn’t exactly make you want to linger at a restaurant, for example. The problem was that it was impossible to pay by card, and my app wouldn’t work either. So we didn’t pay 🤷‍♀️

I don’t get this phobia of paid parking—it’s the same in France, right? Paris, Lyon, Annecy—it’s tough to find free parking in the city center, isn’t it?

I like the game "find where the mouse is" 😛

Not easy to play from a phone 😕

I just checked the routes for Evolène or Moiry: it's too far from where we'll be staying, so if there's no accommodation closer by, we won't go...

For mountains closer to Lausanne, you can go to Dent de Jaman. However, you’ll have to scramble a bit to reach the summit. But you don’t have to go all the way up if you don’t want to. 😉

Or in the Jura, there’s Dent de Vaulion, Croix de Châtel, and Mont Tendre. The parking lots are free. Then, you can drive down the other side into the Vallée de Joux and enjoy Lac de Joux. From Mont Tendre, it’s not possible to descend toward the Vallée de Joux. On the other hand, it’s very easy and quick from Mollendruz, so after hiking to Croix de Châtel or Dent de Vaulion. If you don’t want to walk too much, you can drive up to Dent de Vaulion. There’s a parking lot near the restaurant, and in ten minutes, you’re at the summit. On a clear day, you can see all the way to Lac de Neuchâtel. The parking is free.

For smaller lakes, there’s Lac Lioson from Les Mosses and Petit Lac Retaud from Les Diablerets. For Lac Retaud, there’s a FREE parking lot close to the lake, so you don’t even need to walk much. Same at Les Mosses—you can easily find free parking spots, but you’ll have to walk a bit to get to the lake.

Thank goodness for the flag, otherwise I would’ve said: too far, turn back!

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Big hassle parking in Aarau: everything is paid 24/7 😮 I’m sorry but it still shocks me—it doesn’t make you want to linger at a restaurant, for example. But the problem was that it was impossible to pay by card, and my app wouldn’t work either. So we didn’t pay 🤷‍♀️

I don’t get this phobia of paid parking—it’s the same in France, right? Paris, Lyon, Annecy—hard to park for free downtown?

Uh, 24/7? Usually, you just move away from the centers! But even when you do, it’s the same.

It’s not so much about paying if you’re going downtown, but you’ve still got to be able to! I explained—it wouldn’t take cards, and my app (downloaded in Fribourg) didn’t work either.

I just checked the routes for Evolène or Moiry: it's too far from where we'll be staying, so if there's no accommodation closer by, we won't go...

For mountains closer to Lausanne, you can go to Dent de Jaman. But you’ll have to scramble a bit to reach the summit. Though you don’t have to go all the way up.😉

Or in the Jura, there’s Dent de Vaulion, Croix de Châtel, and Mont Tendre. The parking lots are free. Then you can drive down the other side into the Vallée de Joux and enjoy Lac de Joux. From Mont Tendre, it’s not possible to descend toward the Vallée de Joux. However, it’s really easy and quick from Mollendruz, so after hiking to Croix de Châtel or Dent de Vaulion. If you don’t want to walk too much, you can drive up to Dent de Vaulion. There’s a parking lot near the restaurant, and in ten minutes, you’re at the summit. On a clear day, you can see all the way to Lac de Neuchâtel. The parking is free.

For smaller lakes, there’s Lac Lioson from Les Mosses and Petit Lac Retaud from Les Diablerets. For Lac Retaud, there’s a FREE parking lot close to the lake, so you don’t even need to walk much. Same at Les Mosses—you can easily find free parking spots, but you’ll have to walk to get to the lake.

It’s not so much about paying, but we’ve got to consider the distances. We’re also short on time..