It seems that this summer is all about visiting glaciers or revisiting places that I have already seen during winter. Visiting glaciers has been an impressive experience! I didn’t get to take a closer look to the Icelandic glaciers when I visited the country a few years ago, and seeing these ice giants more closely has been on my bucket list since then! And revisiting those places where I already went during winter is always a good idea… the landscape changes so much during the year that sometimes I feel that I have never been to those places before!!
Today’s post is about one of those places. In late January I visited one of the most beautiful Alpine lakes in Switzerland, the Oeschinensee, in Kandersteg, Canton Bern. It was impressive! Everything was covered with a thick layer of snow, the winter light was incredibly beautiful that day and when we arrived to the lake, it was completely frozen! We could even walk on the ice and see people fishing on the frozen lake! That time, the hike was a short one. The trails where covered in snow and most of them were used as ski or sled slopes, so we took the easy way, the gondola, to get to the Kandersteg ski slopes and walk through the forest to the lake…
In summer everything is so different! With all the hiking trails clear, we decided to walk from the town of Kandersteg to the lake. The trail was short and easy, but gorgeous, with beautiful views of the mountains around the valley crowned with low and grey clouds, the sound of the waterfalls from the near rock wall accompanying us along the way. After ascending some 500m, we reached the upper valley where Swiss cows where grazing on the Alpine pastures and soon we saw the Oeschinen lake in front of us. What was all ice and white during winter, now was a beautiful turquoise lake surrounded by mountains and vertical cliffs. There were small waterfalls on all of these mountains, falling into the lake. And romantic rowing boats were all on the lake… Since I visited this lake in winter I was looking forward to visiting it again in another season… And I have to say, it didn’t disappoint me! The best part was all those low clouds, covering all the peaks around the lake. The whole place had a beautiful moody atmosphere that day. After having lunch in one of the Berggasthaus with views of the lake and walking around it for a bit, we headed back to Zurich and we made a little stop at the lakeside village of Iseltwald, in lake Brienz, and Lungernersee.
Here are some photos I took during this trip. I hope you like them! And now, I’m going to make a little break of two weeks… See you soon!!!
Muy bonitas Mer.
Mil gracias, Isaac!!!! 🙂
Me encantan!!!
Mil gracias, Carmen!! Que ilusión que te hayan gustado! Es uno de mis lagos favoritos!
Thanks for the beautiful trip. I wonder if the Swiss realize that they live in a land of beauty? The more I travel, the more I appreciate that I can get to mountains, valleys and the ocean all within two hours. Have a great two weeks. I’ll look forward to your next post.
Thanks a lot, Anne!! So glad you like this new trip! Fortunately, Swiss know how lucky they are. I haven’t see a country that cares so much about its landscapes and nature, and Swiss people love their mountains! They spend a lot of time outdoors, summer or winter, and they are super respectful with nature. They’re champions in recycling and not leaving traces when they go out! Most expats living in Switzerland don’t understand why Swiss are so exaggerated with these things, but I love them just because of it! It’s such a privilege to live in a country with these landscapes so close to home and so well maintained!
And now, my two well deserved weeks of blog-holidays! hehehe! I’m travelling the next days and I won’t have time to edit and write… But I’ll be taking photos and travelling, so I’ll come back with more posts soon!!! Have a great time you too, Anne!
It surely has a different vibe. But still fascinating! 🙂
Thanks a mil, Len!! Oeeschinensee is definitely one of the prettiest places I’ve been…. And I don’t know which version I like more, winter or summer… it’s such a different place in each season!! 🙂