On Monday, our third day in Switzerland, we grabbed Henry (Randy and Tamara’s dog – the only canine I might love as much as Lois), packed a picnic lunch, and caught a train to the village of Les Diablerets, in the Swiss Alps.

Scenes from the train ride

One of the coolest things about Switzerland is how dog-friendly everything is. Dogs on trains, dogs in restaurants, dogs in clothing stores – totally normal. Henry even got his own seat on the bus when we were re-routed due to train maintenance.

The ride to Les Diablerets was pretty curvy, winding through little villages of picturesque Swiss chalets.

We were hopeful that since it was mid-April and 70+ degrees outside that enough winter snow had melted to make hiking up one of the lower mountain passes possible. However, we also wanted to conduct proper trail research so that we knew what we were signing up for. Randy and Tamara had done the hike a few times with their friends before.

The village of Les Diablerets, a popular ski and snowboarding town located in the Bernese Alps, located between the cantons of Valais and Vaud, in the western French-speaking part of Switzerland. The summit is 3,210 metres high, making it the highest mountain in the canton of Vaud. There are actually several glaciers located near the summit of Les Diablerets.

We walked from the bus station to the outskirts of town, towards the hiking trails. Already the snow drifts were pretty high, but we decided to try our luck.

We passed a little logging operation (that happened to smell fantastic) and of course the boys had to investigate.

 

We started to hike the trail Randy and Tamara had planned, but the snow was about three feet deep so we could only go part of the way before we had to turn around.

Not to be deterred, we found another paved path (read: construction site clearly marked ‘no trespassers’) and decided to stop for a picnic.

   

Oh and another thing, the most popular flavor of potato chips in Switzerland is ‘paprika.’ They are actually really tasty.

After lunch and a harrowing run in with the law construction workers, we continued our hike and looked for an alternate path.

 

Just an old man cross-country skiing. Those Swiss people, so fit I tell ya.

Seriously so beautiful. No witty commentary needed.

We walked around for awhile and came across a path that was significantly less snowy.

     Snow on the ground and Jacob’s sporting shorts and a t-shirt.

Eventually we made our way back to the village and returned to Rand and Tam’s house in time for happy hour on the water.

They have a great little rocky beach with a table and stone ‘benches’ on the waterfront below their townhouse.

The boys skipping rocks into Lake Geneva.

Pretty perfect way to end an incredible day in the Swiss Alps if you ask me.

Next up in our Swiss adventures: a castle, fondue and Freddie Mercury!

AND In case you missed the first two days of our trip:

Jessi & Jacob Go To Switzerland: Day 1

Switzerland Day 2: Lausanne & a Boat to France