Lötschental [Switzerland]

Q-see

I like hiking cows
Joined
Dec 18, 2012
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Now it's time for another swiss report.

I wanted to go there for a long time. I knew it is a beautiful place but it took me years getting there.
Last summer, we made it to that side valley of the Valais. This is in the German speaking part of the Valais.


View larger map.
Getting there is easy, just follow the only road until it ends ;-)

On the way, we passed Blatten, a typical small valaisian village. We decided to stop over and have a look.
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A kind of granary. The stone plates keeps the rats away.
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Then, we drove on, until the road's end. There's a hotel, a parking lot and a small primitive campground.
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The first day, we just went out for a short hike where we met these grasshoppers.
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We followed a beautifil trail.
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Shortly after this picture, we found a beautiful place to rest.
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We then decided to go back to the campground.
On the way down, I saw a nice looking small lake so I decided to pay it a visit. It' right behind the trees on the right hillside.
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On the way up, I found out that the cows liked to use the hiking trail as well and now you know where I got my avatar from.
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Come a little closer...
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Then I reached the lake.
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It was a bit windy so the lake wasn't as clear as it could so I went back to the campground. I would see it the next day again anyway.
Back at the campground, I enjoyed the nice view on the mountains and glaciers.
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As it got dark, I took my camera out and watched the stars.
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The next day, we hiked to the glacier (Langgletscher).
It was quite an easy trail, not too much difference in height and the nature was just beautiful.
The trail led us to that well known lake. The water was calm now so it looked nicer than the day before.
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On the way up, we passed a broken boulder.
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The glacier could hardly be seen, it was covered with debris.
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I went a bit closer to the galcier snout when I found some mountain crystal. Just little ones but anyway.
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Great shots....... though we do differ in that I hate running into cows when hiking.
 
Great shots....... though we do differ in that I hate running into cows when hiking.

Haha! That's what I think every time I see them in these TR's, but then I think swiss cows seem so much more friendly than the grumpy, diarrhea spewing cows I run into out here!
 
Yes, swiss cows are friendly. At least mostly they are.
They are used to be with people. In the mountains, they usually get milked by hand every day.
However, I recommend to pass them always at the hillside. Several years ago, it already happened that a cow pushed a hiker down the hill.
 
Yes, swiss cows are friendly. At least mostly they are.
They are used to be with people. In the mountains, they usually get milked by hand every day.
However, I recommend to pass them always at the hillside. Several years ago, it already happened that a cow pushed a hiker down the hill.

I don't run into "mean" cows and I don't have anything against bovine overall (I love a good steak); but for some reason I just hate smelling, seeing them, and tiptoeing around their aftermath when I am backpacking. Not really sure why they bother me so much then and not other times but such is the case. I have nothing against equine either but the wild donkeys stomping through my camp each night when camped by lake Mead always annoy me to the point that they are also off of my Christmas card list so to say. I guess my annoyance with/by these beasts is very situational dependent. Just my quirk it seems.

Q-see, I would guess that Swiss hikers are much more tolerant of them than I since the cowbell is national symbol for Switzerland. It would be like me not liking Eagles.

Cows or no cows.....looks like a nice hike and thanks for the pics.
 
Q-see, I would guess that Swiss hikers are much more tolerant of them than I since the cowbell is national symbol for Switzerland. It would be like me not liking Eagles.
It's pretty much like this, you summed it up properly.
 

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