Worked off today’s treats

August 24, 2023

Lots of climbing today

Today we had several climbs with switch backs, over 4000 feet in about 42 miles. We ate lunch in Gruyere and visited a medieval town complete with castle that sits on a precipice with farming valleys on either side. Obvious climb up. This time walking the pedestrian paths to the town.

Gruyère a one street village the home of Gruyère cheese

For lunch we had traditional fondue made with the famous Gruyère cheese. Did you know that it is generally served with potatoes and bread?

Then we rode down hill to the Cailler chocolate factory and tour. Did you know it’s the only chocolate made with whole milk? Needless to say there were lots of dairy cows along the way. They each wore a cow bell and we rode along to the music of their bells creating an interesting Cacophony of sounds across the meadows.

Our ride was longer than the standard tour and took multiple navigating apps to keep on course. The bike tour company provided an app with navigation and also emphasized the need to download Swiss mobility an app designed for non motorized travel. We would have had a real problem navigating without Swiss mobility and our trusty ride with gps app.

A few roads were closed due to construction. Lots of fun when you just climbed a mountain- fortunately one of the road crew guys spoke enough English to point and say we just needed to go back down to the next intersection and turn left and left. Yeah! Back on route.

We rode through beautiful country on narrow roads and paths. Up hill and down. Through small towns and well thought out paths through larger towns. But the piece de resistance was a ride through a lovely forest arriving at a surprise resort chalet style hotel with 3 heated pools with jets and waterfalls, both indoor and outdoor with more features than one can imagine. In our room was a liter of fizzy water and half a dozen meringues with a note stating simply, with compliments. Definitely feeling pampered. Tomorrow it’s back up hill through the forest and down bicycle route 9 to Gstaad. Rain is in the forecast for mid afternoon with highs of mid 80s, 10 degrees cooler than today.

Bicycle route 9 will be our friend for the rest of the trip!

Today's ride: 42 miles (68 km)
Total: 688 miles (1,107 km)

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Kathryn Ziewitz68 km, way to go!
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8 months ago

Laurie KoburgerHow much of the climbing did you have to do off the bike? Or did they give you enough boost that you were able to stay on the bike?
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8 months ago

Jane FletcherTo Laurie KoburgerSo far the bikes have had plenty of power. I have been surprised with how much assist they give when you bump it up for a hill. Much better than I expected.
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8 months ago