When seasons meet

Sometimes plans don’t go the way you imagine. This isn’t necessarily bad… You plan to go somewhere just to make a photo and, eventually, you end up doing something entirely different from what you had in mind. This happened to me a few days ago. Like last year, we went to Elm, canton Glarus, to visit the annual Käsemärkt and the traditional Alpabfarht, the cow parade that marks the end of summer in the Swiss Alps (you can see photos from last year here, and photos from the Alpabfahrt in Entlebuch a few weeks ago here). But instead of taking photos of the cows and the market stalls, I ended up with something a bit different in my camera.

Last year Elm left me impressed. This tiny town is located in a deep valley, surrounded by forests and the monumental peaks of the Glarus Thrust (part of the UNESCO World Heritage Tectonic Arena Sardona). At the time of the year when the Käsemärkt takes place, this beautiful valley is starting to change its lush summer green for the beautiful golden tones of autumn. If the valley itself is beautiful, just imagine how stunning it becomes when autumn arrives… Visiting Elm during the Käsemärkt just makes the experience even more fun!

A few days ago I went with one goal in mind: portraying the Alpabfarht again, maybe trying to get a different perspective than last year (and buying some delicious Alpine cheese made in one of the Alpine farms of the region, of course!!). But when we arrived something else got my full attention. The views! All around Elm, dark low clouds and the fog were covering the mighty peaks at both sides of the valley. The golden and ocre autumnal tones were starting to take over the green forest and grass in the mountains. And the clouds kept coming and going, covering and unveiling part of the landscape as they moved around the mountains… I don’t know why, but these dancing clouds fascinate me every time I see them! And that day in Elm, they created such a dramatic autumn atmosphere! Best of all, there was already snow in the highest peaks… It looked as if winter was in a hurry to arrive even when autumn had barely just started, and the collision of seasons just improved the melancholic mood of the landscape.

Well, here are some photos of that beautiful and festive (and cold) day in Elm. I hope you like them!