After a leisurely start and a lovely breakfast in the hotel, we walked to the station and took the 10 minute journey along the valley to Herbriggen.
From here, the path rose very steeply up through coniferous forest. The steep gradient was relentless and very tiring. Despite it not being particularly hot or sunny, I was dripping with sweat! At this point, the scenery wasn’t even very pretty!
There were sections with steps and ropes, and wooden bridges over gullies and waterfalls. These helped and, although it was still tough going, we ticked off the ascent bit by bit. Also, as we climbed, the views improved and the scenery was lovely.
I found the climb fun at times, despite all the heavy breathing and sweating. I also felt a bit smug that, for once, John was finding it harder than me… probably a combination of wine and beer last night, a poor night’s sleep and a sore throat.
Eventually, we broke out of the woods onto open ground and the gradient eased for a while, until we had a final steep climb of 150 metres.
After that, we traversed the valley on an easy path interspersed with boulder fields with steep drop offs and sketchy sections where there had been rockfalls.
Soon after, we saw Europahütte, perched on the hillside, which is where we are spending the night. We could also see the long suspension bridge, which we’ll be crossing tomorrow.
We enjoyed lunch on the balcony in the sunshine, before a cold wind drove us back inside. Everyone staying here is sharing one shower, and the toilets are long drop non flushing toilets. However, it’s all working out ok. Dinner was delicious and the 4 people we’re sharing a dormitory with are friendly.
Tomorrow, the section of the trail we should be doing is closed so, once we’ve crossed the suspension bridge we’re heading downhill to the valley and catching the train to Zermatt… the end of our trek! I can’t believe it’s over already!
PS An ibex came to visit the hut this evening 😍
Ramblings 
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