Also the second hike of my “holiday trilogy” is one that has been on my list for a long time already and it actually wouldn't be a surprise if you have heard of that place before. The Creux du Van is dubbed as the “Grand Canyon of Switzerland” and having seen many spectacular pictures of it, I definitely wanted to pay that landmark a visit during my stay in the western part of Switzerland. Unfortunately, today's forecast wasn’t too good, as a bad weather front from yesterday still had to move away and that's why I decided to do a late start, hoping that the clouds would be gone once I arrived at the Creux du Van. :) As the intended hike was a bit short however, I opted to add the Areuse gorge to the itinerary today. Actually, I had walked through the gorge the day before already, but knowing that I wouldn’t blog about that hike, today's detour not only added some distance and time, but also gave me the chance to write about it and show you a picture of the gorge. :) Starting at the train station of Champ-du-Moulin, I headed straight down to the Areuse and began to follow the river. Knowing the way from the day before, I was astonished how much more water there was compared to yesterday. The river also was much faster and wilder, but as it had rained the best part of the last 24 hours, that shouldn’t have come as a surprise. As the sky was still overcast, the views didn’t change too much and the walk along the Areuse served more as a warm up than anything else. Coming upon the actual gorge however, I slowed down the pace and remained for a while at that absolutely marvelous site. The water rushed and thundered down along the rocks, it was crazy to think that just 24 hours before, the same place had been calm and quiet like a pleasant summer evening. :)
When I had seen enough, I took the turnoff at the gorge and started to ascend through the woods. The slope was fairly gentle and as there was no need to hurry, I found enough time to take a couple pictures of my surroundings. :)
Emerging from the forest once I had reached a vast plateau, I came upon a restaurant and noticed that it actually wasn’t a plateau, but the basin of the Creux du Van. :) Taking a look up ahead, I could see a steep wall vanishing in the clouds above and so there it was, my first view of the Creux du Van.
Passing the restaurant, it wasn’t yet time to take a break and so I just moved on, heading back into the woods once more. Not much happened during that next part, only a few mouses and squirrels could be seen scurrying around the undergrowth. The weather god also wasn’t on my side, as it started to rain again and I had to take shelter under a tree for a while. Not only the weather was letting me down though... I had expected to get a view from the basin up to the walls of the Creux du Van, but the trees constantly barred the way and there simply was no view at all. That was a pity, but definitely not the end of the world. :) Having walked across most of the basin, the next ascending slope was eventually waiting for me. It was a rather steep one and at some point in the middle I opted to take a break to eat some food, but while I was finishing up my lunch, it suddenly started to snow. Oh damn you, dear weather god. :) At least it wasn’t snowing heavily and once I had resumed my hike, the sun finally broke through the clouds for a first time. Oh thank you, dear weather god. :) As quickly as the sun had appeared though, as quickly it vanished again, but at least from now on it was a constant change between clouds and sun. After all, I finally knew that I would get some views from the top. :) Before that however, I had a nice encounter with three not very shy chamois and once more I marveled at the beauty of those animals.
Moving upwards on a trail that got muddier and muddier, a lot of hopping around was needed during the last part of the ascent. Eventually arriving on the top, the first viewpoint greeted me a couple minutes later and what a gorgeous one it was! The whole Creux du Van spread in front of me and it definitely must be right there, where all those beautiful pictures were taken. :) Deciding to eat a second lunch, I sat down for a long time and just marveled at the stunning scenery.
Of course the Creux du Van is a number one sightseeing spot and even though the weather wasn’t that good and it was late in the afternoon already, there were still quite some people out and about. That didn’t bother me at all however and when I finally was able to break away from that viewpoint, I started to walk along the edge of the wall. The pace on that trail was pretty slow though, as there simply were too many beautiful views to be had. Lucky me, I still was in absolutely no hurry. :)
Surprisingly, some parts along the crest were cordoned off, forcing me to take a couple detours without any views at all. The reason being were the amount of people that had visited the Creux du Van over the recent years. Trampling along the same path, the vegetation had evidently suffered a lot, so it was about time to give the flowers and grass a well deserved break to recover from their ordeal. Obviously, nature goes first, so that was perfectly fine with me. In the middle of the crest, I decided to take a short detour to a nearby viewpoint, but that was a waste of time, as the Alps at the horizon were pretty far away and mostly behind the clouds. So I headed back right away and finished the walk along the crest. Coming upon the end, I sat down on a rock and enjoyed the scenery for one last time. Having spent about two hours at the Creux du Van, I think I definitely made that place justice. :)
The village of Noiraigue was bound to be my final destination on today's hike and to reach it, a rather steep descent awaited me. Before long I was back in the woods once more, where serpentines led the way down on a narrow path. Having left behind the “masses” at the Creux du Van, I had the trail almost to myself again, as I came across only one other guy, pushing his mountain bike up the hill. :) Well, otherwise there wasn’t too much happening on the way down and I was glad that the houses of Noiraigue appeared rather sooner than later. Arriving at the train station, the sun was now shining constantly and sitting down on a nearby bench, I let the day go through my head again. While the Creux du Van is a very beautiful place and for sure is worth a visit, I think the term “Grand Canyon of Switzerland” doesn’t really fit. Firstly, the Creux du Van is no canyon and secondly, it’s a lot smaller than the grand “brother” in the US. Being such a small country however, it’s cool that we have a sight like that in Switzerland. So, if you're ever in the area, don’t forget to include the walk along the crest of the Creux du Van, it’s definitely recommended. :)
Highlight of the day: the views from the crest of the Creux du Van
This hike is for you if:
- you want to visit one of the top ten attractions in Switzerland
- you’re looking for the best views over the Creux du Van
- you like some diversity (Areuse gorge, forests, a crest walk, different viewpoints)
- you’re looking for a not too strenuous day hike in the area
This hike is not for you if:
- you don’t want to share the trail with many other people
- you have vertigo or don’t like to walk along a crest with nothing to hold on to
- you want to be far away from civilization
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