Summer is almost over… I say almost because, when I came home last week, it still looked a lot like summer. It’s been a hot and long summer in Zurich, and the city welcomed me back exactly as I left it: scorching temperatures and a clean blue sky… It felt as if I hadn’t been away for almost a month!!
Right before I went on holidays, I went to the mountains for the last hike of the season. This time I went to a place that I had never been before: Pizol, a ski area not far from Walensee. I had heard the area was beautiful… and I found it to be stunning!
The name of the route that I made that day is somewhat revealing: Fünf Seen Wanderung, the five lakes hike, a short but not so easy route. For this hike, I went to the little town of Wangs, where I took a gondola and two chairlifts to reach the starting point of the route, the Pizolhütte, at 2227m altitude. From there, the path takes you to the five lakes, each one different from the other, all of them beautiful.
The first one is Wangsersee, a small lake close to the Pizolhütte. Although the lake wasn’t very impressive, the views around were worth the hike… Almost touching the clouds, Swiss cows were grazing around the lake, and when the clouds opened a little bit, the views of the surrounding mountains were gorgeous. After Wangsersee, the trail climbs in a beautiful valley until it reaches Wildseelücke, at 2493m, and behind it, the Wildsee awaits at the end of what once was the Pizol Glacier. Then the trail descends a bit to the deep turquoise Schottensee, where people were brave enough to swim in its cold water. From there, the path ascends again to Schwarzplangg, where the breathtaking views cover the Pizol glacier, Ringelspitz, Piz Sardona and the Glarus Alps. Soon the fourth lake appears, the dark and beautiful Schwarzsee. The trail continues to the Steinmannlis (cairns, some of them as old as 100 years) and finally takes you to the green waters of Baschalvasee. After the last lake, the trail continues to Station Gaffia, where you can take the chairlift and gondola back to Wangs.
I loved this route, even though it was surprisingly crowded! The weather was cooler than in the city, and it was a bit cloudy, perfect for filtering the harsh sun light and giving the landscape a beautiful moody atmosphere… Perfect to photograph it!
By the way, how was your summer? As you have seen, I have spent almost all of it going to the mountains here in Switzerland… But I’ve been also in Spain, relaxing with my family and friends… and I’ve visited Amsterdam!! I’ll write about that soon! 🙂
Well, here are some photos I took during this last summer hike in Pizol… I hope you like them!
very nice pictures!!!
Thanks a million, Fran!!! So happy you like them!!!! I think my next post will be about Amsterdam… 🙂
Stunning pictures. The lakes look small–true? I’m looking forward to your Amsterdam images. My friend is from the Netherlands, and I’ll forward the blog post on to her. I also want to see pictures of Spain.
Thanks a lot, Anne!!! Yes, they are small lakes… big enough to swim in them! If you like frozen water! Hehehe and big enough to have beautiful reflections when the water is calm 🙂
I’ll write a post or two about Amsterdam! I loved the city and I was super lucky with the weather!! My brother, who lives there, says it is a bit like Dublin, it rains a lot and there is only one or two nice summer weeks every year, hehehe… And I saw a lot of beautiful sunsets there too!
I’m not so sure about photos from Spain though… When I visit home I’m always in a hurry, going from my in-laws home to my family’s and then, meeting with friends… I don’t have a quiet time to explore and make photos in Madrid anymore… But I did photograph a wedding during my holidays in Madrid!!! The photos are for the couple and I won’t publish them, of course… but it was an amazing experience!!! 🙂
I hope you had a great summer, Anne!!! It’s great to be back and hearing from you! 🙂
Gorgeous images, but I’d expect nothing less from you 🙂
Aw, thanks a million!!!! I’m so happy you like them!! I was so looking forward to coming home and publishing these photos. This hike is one of the most beautiful I’ve made in Switzerland… The landscape is just breathtaking there… I always say the same in every post, don’t I? Hehehehe… I just love these mountains!!