Day seven of hiking. We’ve been doing this day after day for a week now, averaging about 10 miles a day and the equivalent of a legit mountain hike daily. One whole week.
Today was so much relaxing than yesterday and we all enjoyed it. We woke (along with our three random roommates) to a perfect refugio breakfast of homemade 17,000 grain bread, jellies, and granola. Meats, wedges of cheese, yogurt, a multitude of coffee options, and fresh fruit added to the meal.
We didn’t have much milage or ascent/descent today, so we took our time getting on the trail. About a half mile from the start was the biggest and best playground. The girls and I immediately ran to the zipline and took turns zipping though the park. It was fun and fast! I wouldn’t have let a toddler on it, despite the rest of the park being designed for young kiddos.
We gradually descended toward a tiny community, that happened to have the an outdoor creperie. We had planned on stopping for lunch, even though it was a little early. It was the only option for lunch on the trail today. And, goodness, am I glad we stopped. Zak and I shared a ham and raclette one and a dark chocolate, banana, and coconut one. Yum! The girls each ordered apple juice with their crepes and were served wine!
With satisfied stomachs we started the big ascent of the day. At only 1,900 feet, it wasn’t too bad. It was steep, and in a short milage section, but we did it without much issue. To help pass the time there were whimsical carvings in tree stumps to look at every quarter mile or so. We also came across a cave that had stalagmites. It was very cool, and don’t really even like caves.
After 9.65 miles on the trail we made it to our hotel. We did a huge load of laundry in the tub and we’re given permission to hang everything in the boiler room with hopes it will dry overnight. We went to the lake and the girls paddle boated for an hour. I have no idea how they had the muscle power to do it. Zak and watched from an outdoor cafe and ate a valais platter. I think we won.
We had been under the mistaken impression that half board was not included with our room tonight, so made reservations at the local fondue place. When we checked in the lovely hotel host asked if there were any dietary restrictions for dinner and we explained our situation. She then suggested we cancel the reservation and they’ll just make fondue for us. Sure enough, we were the only table in the dining room that had a fondue burner on it when we walked in. It was delicious. I’m sure the salmon was too, but I could see some jealous glares our way.
