In January 2008 I (Henry Jonker) went a week (January 6-11) for a course to Kandersteg, and in July 2008, we (Henry Jonker and Marcel Jonker) went for ample two weeks (July 6-21) for vacation towards the Alps of Berner Oberland and Wallis. We have been at the places as indicated on the map. The total distance with start and end in Epe is about 3600 km. This page contains a photo and travel report of the winter-week Kandersteg and this summer-vacation to the Swiss Alps.

In January 2008 I went a week to Kandersteg for the NCCR course Biomolecular Modelling. The course and stay were arranged in the Victoria Ritter hotel. In between the lectures and the practicals there was opportunity to visit some of the environment, among other things and I made some nice walking trips to the Oeschinen lake and Sunnbühl.

Both for the Oeschinen lake and Sunnbühl the field one could take the cable-rail up and walk fairly well on the snow, although at some places one could suddenly sink down considerably in the snow. One of the days we had an evening torchlight procession, at which we got mulled wine (glühwein) on the way and at the end a cheese fondue and raclette.

Six months later I went back to Switzerland for the summer holidays. On Sunday, July 6 we leave around noon from Frankfurt after we have packed the luggage in one car. The voyage goes well and we are already quite early in Interlaken, where we go to the camping site with the name Hobby. Just as we have put up the tent and we are ready, it starts to rain.

On monday the weather is still cloudy. We're going to Interlaken and find a fairly good supermarket (eurospar) near the motorway exit at Wilderswil. We make a trip to Grindelwald and Stechelberg. There we visit the beautiful Staubbachfall (where one can walk under) and the very impressive Trummelbachfalle. This waterfall goes through caves and a deep cleft down.

The next day we take the train to Spiez and then by the Lötschenbergtunnel to Goppenstein. We continue by bus to Fafleralp, where we make a beautiful hike up to the glacier. Here, people work with helicopters on the construction of a house or a restaurant.

Wednesday was a sunny day and we directly go to the Jungfraujoch (3454 m). We go by train from Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen, where we take the cog-railway to Wengen and Kleine Scheidegg. The station-broadcaster gives blurry messages, but fortunately we find a place in the train to the Jungfraujoch.

It is a wonderful trip with magnificent views from the Eiger-wall and on top of the Jungfraujoch. It is pretty crowded and there are many different nationalities present. We make a nice walk on the glacier to the Mönch-hut.

On the way back we take the cog-railway to Grindelwald. On the way it is funny to see in the train how a fat American tries to make photos with his camera using the flash through a closed window and against the sun.

On Thursday we drive by car to Stechelberg where we take the cable-rail to the Schilthorn (2971 m). The weather is very nice again and we have a great view over the Alps including the peaks of the Jungfrau (4158 m), Mönch (4107 m) and Eiger (3970 m). We go for a hike and descend the mountain all the way to Gimmelwald (1400 m) where we take the cable-rail back to Stechelberg. It was a beautiful, but challenging, trip over the rocks and through alpine meadows.

We make another trip by train and cog-railways to Kleine Scheidegg (2061 m) and thereafter we go further to take the cable-rail at Grindelwald to First (2168 m) where we make a trip and enjoy the beautiful views.

At Wilderswil we take another cog-rail to the Schynige Platte (1967 m). There one has a nice view over the Alps, the lakes (of Thun and Brienz) and Interlaken itself. In the evening we are just back in time at the camping site as the weather changes to rain and thunder.

Saturday is a mostly cloudy and rainy day. We make a trip by car to Adelboden (where the fire-brigade just has a look at the fire near a farm, of which the dark clouds were already visible from far) and Kandersteg (the sun breaks through here). Then we visit the city Thun.

Also Sunday the weather is mainly cloudy. We drive to the Vierwaltstätter lake and visit the town of Luzern with its well known wooden bridges. The way back we drive over the Sustenstrasse. After a week we leave the camping site in Berner Oberland and drive through the Grimselpass to Wallis. On departure it rains and on top of the mountain pass (2165 m) it is even snowing.

Past Visp we find a suitable camping site in Raron (Santa Monica). We are fortunate that we arrive here early and still get a nice place. It became very sunny weather and the soaking-wet tent is dry in no time.

For Tuesday, July 15, the weather forecast is good and it is indeed a very sunny day. We drive to Täsch, where we take the train to Zermatt (no cars allowed). There we take the cable-rails to the Little Matterhorn (3883 m), where we are again situated in between the snow and glaciers. At the Trochener Steg cabel-rail-station we make a walking trip along the lake and in the direction of the Matterhorn (4478 m). Here we also have a magnificent view over the valley and the Furg glacier. We take the last gondola (already at 16.45!) back.

Wednesday is again a sunny day and we go to Saas-Fee. The cabel-rail-stations are not so clearly signposted. We take the cable-rail to Felskinn (3000 m) and then to the Allalin (3500 m), where we see the large skiing-resort.

On the way back a group of Italian skiers pretty annoyingly push and mow with their skis and sticks. In the next gondola it stinks awfully; a somewhat older passenger apparently did not wash himself for quite a while... In the afternoon we take the cable-rail to Längfluh (2870 m), where one is in the middle of the Fee glacier. We make a nice hiking tour along the glacier to the Spielboden cabel-rail-station (2447 m) and see on the way some ibexes.

The next day is cloudy and we make a trip by car to Sion, Arolla and the large dam (Barrage de la grande Dixence). On top of the dam the clouds completely close and it starts to rain.

The plan for friday was to go to the Aletsch glacier, but at Fiesch it rains. We drive further and make a trip across the Furkastrasse, where we see the glacier-cave, and Oberalpass to Graubunden.

Then we'll go on over the Lukmanierpass to Ticino. The choice to drive back by Locarno at the Lago Maggiore is bad. We end up in a traffic jam at 34 degrees celcius and also the road towards Centovalliis badly indicated. The Italians drive here like crazy over the narrow paths of the mountain pass.

We drive back to Switzerland by the Simplonpass (or as the Italians indicate it on their practically unreadable signs with small letters as Sempione ...). We get back late at the camping site.

On saturday the weather is fine, and we still go to the Aletsch glacier at Fiesch. On the Eggishorn (2869 m) we have a wonderful panoramic view, with on the one side the Aletsch glacier and Junkfrau and on the other side the Matterhorn.

We make a nice walking trip to the nearby rocky peak and after that we descend to the Fiescheralp cable-rail-station. Here we go down again in the musty gondola packed as cattle on each other. It was a beautiful day and a nice completion of the holiday. Sunday we drive back to Frankfurt and from there on to Epe.