Switzerland Part 1: The first days on the road

After weeks of planning and our beautiful wedding the departure date finally arrived. We cleared the apartment, put everything in a box and spent the last night in empty rooms on our mattresses and surrounded by our cycling equipment. We were too exhausted to even get nervous. But it did get a little hectic on the last morning, because the apartment got cleaned while we were still packing our belongings for the first time in our Ortlieb panniers and suddenly we felt ill-prepared. Somehow, we managed to put all our things in the bags and even though the last weeks have been bustling, we knew that the feeling of freedom will follow soon.

We said goodbye to our friends and families on different occasions before, so we were surprised how many of our friends still showed up on the Wednesday morning of our departure. We sat together with coffee and prosecco and it got harder and harder to set off. But time went by and we did want to get somewhere on that first day, so at midday, it was time to go. This was a very special moment for us, but because of all the excitement we couldn’t grasp the scope of it all. We cycled one last time through the old town of Baden, over the bridge and to the house of Lisa’s parents in Wettingen. One last hug and off we went.

Down by the water

We slowly followed familiar roads, but the feeling was different than ever before. We had to adapt to the weight of the equipment. Many questions kept rushing through our heads. What are we actually doing? Is our body ready for this? How do we react mentally and physically to the change and how are we going to deal with difficulties along the way? How would this affect our relationship, being constantly together 24/7? Long-distance cycling can be very challenging at times and our previous trips around Europe were much shorter. There are so many unknowns. But these thoughts passed quickly and suddenly we started smiling and it was such a great feeling to just pedal while a new world was slowly unfurling with the spin of the wheels.

After a short lunch break on a lake we cycled through densely populated areas onwards to another lake where we stopped and jumped in the refreshing water. We looked at the others around us, people with paddle boards, picknick lunches and children with giant inflatable flamingos. For them it is a nice excursion on a sunny day, but for us it would be so much more. A strange feeling, that this would be our life now and that this new chapter actually started. It will probably take a while to realize what is happening to us and to mentally arrive in this trip. We reached the Pfäffikersee in the evening light and after a beer on the lake it was time to find our first camping spot in the wild.

We were lucky and found a free space among some trees and not too far from a cycle path. Some mountain bikers passed by, but it seemed fine, although wild camping is prohibited in Switzerland as in many other European countries.

The next day we continued driving through villages in the Canton Zürich onwards to Rapperswil and crossed the Lake Zurich and visited Dario’s aunt and grandparents in Lachen. They cooked us a delicious meal and it was nice to get together one last time. We passed through the Linth valley when it got really hot in the afternoon and Dario had his first flat. If this already happens on the second day, this will be a very long journey.

It was the first stress test under the bright sun and surrounded by hot tarmac, no shade in sight. The flat was fixed quickly, but we reached our campground in Murg on the Walensee only at dawn, because the roads along the Lake Walen included some steep (unnecessary) climbs. Since it was so late already, we decided to spend an extra day at the lake to enjoy the wonderful warm weather.

It was a bliss to go swimming early in the morning when the water was still calm. A beautiful feeling to camp so close to the water. Holiday mode set in and we almost forgot that on the Swiss National Day, 1^st of August, all the supermarkets remain closed and the day after that would also be a Sunday. This meant we had to break-up our super relaxing sunbathing day and drive 16 km to the next big Migros supermarket to get some groceries. In the evening Lukas visited us, Lisa’s former boss, and we had our last goodbye in Switzerland. No more relatives and friends on our way, now it would just be the two of us and all the people that we are going to meet along the way. A last jump in the cold water of the Lake Walen and then we drove towards the mountains to the Canton of Crisons.

Vineyards and Torkels

We arrived in the Canton of Crisons when the sun was at its highest and we had to stand in our own shadows. But fortunately, Switzerland has got many fountains and we were able to cool down in them. We reached the Bündner Herrschaften, a region known for its vineyards, called Torkel. Since the verb “torkeln” in German also translates as loosing coordination when drinking too much, this seemed like an appropriate naming. Of course, we couldn’t leave this region without trying the famous local wine during our lunch break. We cycled through the quaint vilages of Maienfeld, Jenins and Malans and spent the night near Thusis. The next day we would be cycling up the Albula Pass, the first mountain peak for us with fully loaded bikes.

Ain't no mountain high enough 

We have been on cycling trips before and over some mountains, but none of them were as high as the Albula Pass on 2315 m. Would we be able to make it in one day and is it even important to reach the Pass in one day? We have enough time and it was only our fifth day in this trip, so no need to rush anything. But still, the ambition was there and – spoiler alert – we reached the Albula Pass, but didn’t cycle down the other side.

After a very sad breakfast and still hungry we left the area of Domleschg with its many castles and cycled along the deep Viamala gorge to the spectacular Solis Bridge. We hoped to find a more decent breakfast in the sleepy village of Tiefencastel, but couldn’t even find a store or a bakery. So, we had to continue cycling uphill to the scenic village of Bergün. Once we reached Bergün, we were already exhausted and there were clouds approaching and the weather forecast predicted rain in the afternoon. We found a good restaurant and enjoyed a big lunch and we decided to give it a try. If it would start raining, we would just cycle back to Bergün and try reaching the Albula Pass the next day.

The road up the mountain pass from Bergün to Preda serves as a sledging trail in the winter months and the few houses in Preda are only inhabited in the summer. We were surrounded by forests and blooming meadows and we could spot the Rhaetian Railway on its way through the impressive stone viaducts and loop tunnels. In our opinion, the Albula Line is one of most scenic train rides in Switzerland and we can highly recommend it.

We were slowly moving forward and the scenery changed and the green valley made room for a barren landscape full of rocks. We quickly stopped at the blue-green shimmering lake Lai da Paulpuogna. But our legs were too tired to even walk down to the lake and we just took some pictures from the road. We have never cycled up for such a long time and putting on some music helped our motivation. We just wanted to arrive on the top and it also started to rain. After the last steep turns, we finally made it and reached the Albula Pass after 1930 meters of altitude gain and 10 hours in the saddle.

This was the hardest day for us on the bicycle until now and it would just be a small taste of what is to come. Strangely, we weren’t even that hungry, just very tired. After the well-earned beer(s) we spontaneously decided to stay in the mountain lodge Albula Hospiz for two nights and luckily, a room was available. The rustic Hospiz is surrounded by hiking trails and offers cozy rooms and great food, so it was the perfect spot to relax our legs and go for a hike in the high plateau. After the last sun-kissed days we felt transported back to winter the next day with temperatures just above 0° degrees and snow outside the windows. Who would have thought that within a week we would travel from summer to winter? After two nights in the Albula Hospiz we were ready to continue our trip towards the Engadin and over the next mountain pass to the Val Müstair, the easternmost part of Switzerland. To be continued in our next post.