Today was another one for the books. It’s no surprise that we woke up to low clouds in Andermatt but this morning it was the area towards the Furka that showed promise and not the lower Oberalp which we had already been over a couple of times. Dad and I both knew that all we had to do was get out of Andermatt so we suited up early and were on the road by 10am.
The plan was to try and bag a number of very famous passes in one day and we began with the Furkapass which gave us so much trouble our first ride on Saturday. Today was a completely different experience. It looked like we would encounter fog again towards the top, but we honestly did not know really where we were looking. When we got to the place where the fog got so thick on Saturday we realized we could see the top of the pass and there was blue sky at the summit. What was most amazing is the realization that Dad and I had made it a heck of a long way up the pass in the crazy dense fog and snow and did not even realize it. We were sort of impressed with what we didn’t know we had accomplished.
This time we stopped often and took pictures and video and upon cresting the top of the pass we were treated to sweeping panoramic views and deep blue skies. From the top of the top you can see all the way down to the bottom of the Furka and where the Grimsel Pass immediately begins and climbs straight up into what looked like a thick cloud bank. Dad and I turned on the helmet cams and began the trek downward towards the valley floor. It was cold and windy but exhilarating and the lack of guardrails and sheer plummets added to the excitement.Once at the bottom you honestly do not have a moment to blink before you are climbing the Grimsel. The pass is really just a series of steep switchbacks connected by tight hairpin turns. The ride up was one of the quickest pass ascents we have yet made, and that cloud bank was not so bad although it was obvious they had had some snow overnight as there were many workers out shoveling in front of the souvenir shops and restaurants. The descent of the Grimsel towards Interlaken was something entirely different. It was almost like a moonscape with zero vegetation and nothing but rocks and snow. It was also extremely cold, compounded by the fact that I did not layer nearly as much as the day before.
The ride down just kept going and going, very much in contrast to the fast trip up. From moonscape we descended into a lush pine forest and finally to the fertile pasture valley floor. We passed the turn to the Sustan pass that we would take later in the afternoon and headed towards Interlaken. We went left at Interlaken towards the small tourist town of Lauterbrunnen, which is known as the Yosemite of the Alps and for good reason. The valley we rode thru sits in the shadows of 2000-foot sheer cliffs on either side that stretch for miles. This place was awe-inspiring. They’re the sort of walls you see people BASE jump off of on crazy Nat Geo shows. The kind of walls where narrow waterfalls spill off the edge of the cliff and fall so far they just become mist. It was amazing. 
We went to the end of the valley where the road ends and had a big lunch at the Hotel Stechelberg. Dad wanted to go to the ski area of Wengen after lunch but we couldn’t find the turn and instead went to the ski area of Grindelwald which sits in the shadow of the Eiger. I only know the Eiger from the terribly great Clint Eastwood movie The Eiger Sanction which is only worth renting for a good laugh. Once again we were awed by the beauty and massive size of these mountains. Who ever thought to put a ski hill up these peaks must have been out of their mind. We were able to see the Gleckstein Glacier which was very cool.
After leaving this beautiful valley we had to head back the way we came but went thru Interlaken and rode along the turquoise colored lake Brienzersee. I had never seen water this color and it was often distracted as I road along it as it was somewhat mesmerizing. At the crossroads in Interkirchen we began our ascent up the Sustenpass which may be my favorite so far. Unfortunately we did not have the sun with us any longer but this pass was incredible. It climbed thru a thick forest for a long way up and then suddenly you rise above the tree line and are once again in a moonscape. This time however the fall off the edge was the steepest and farthest so far and there are no guardrails to even give you the illusion of safety. I am not really afraid of heights (unlike Dad who when there were no oncoming vehicles was riding in the lane closest to the wall) but I got the willies on a number of occasions. I was also tired and cold from a long day and it all sort of came to a head on this pass. I felt a great sense of accomplishment when we reached the summit only to have a super long ride back down.
Near the bottom we passed a couple riding a tandem peddle bike with a small trailer attached. I knew that by coming down they must have at some point gone up and an hour and a half later, sitting at dinner at our hotel in Andermatt they came peddling by. This meant they also had to have ridden back up the Goshenen pass back into town. They then pulled into the campground next to our hotel and we watched them get off the bike and set up a tent. That right there, ladies and gents, is the truest definition of love I have ever seen. To have to count on your partner to be in sync with your peddling, going up and down what must seem like endless passes only to have to then get in a tent with no shower just to get up the next morning to do it all over again is beyond me. I love my wife more than anything I have loved in my life, but I think we might kill each other before lunch if we had to make such a journey.
Tomorrow we leave Andermatt for somewhere in Italy before we go to Corvara for a few days in the Dolomites. It feels like I have been here for a while and at the same time feels like we are just getting started. The adventure becomes more adventurous each day. I can’t wait to see what tomorrow will bring.
Auf Wiedersehen Switzerland!!!
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