French, Dutch, German and Swiss campers are wonderful, socialised people. This campsite is exquisitely organised, without any fuss – and there are happy families everywhere. Helen says the latter are the perfect antidote for a jaded children’s social worker! The views across the lake in the evening light, with children still playing in the water, were unforgettable. And they all kept quiet, as if by magic, from 10.30 pm!
The evening views of the mountains were stunning. This was the best I could do with the zoom. Thanks to Tim for getting the ID right – see comments below.
The light the next morning was nearly as good – though I couldn’t light both Helen and the mountains (yes, I chose the latter!).
We tore ourselves away and pedalled 5 flat miles into Thun – a lovely town that we had fallen in love with some years earlier. The glacial melt water tearing out of the Thunsee is aquamarine, and the traditional wooden roofed bridges are lovely.
Now we are in Bern, where we plan to have an unplanned day off from cycling. What I mean is – the trip is planned so that we should arrive in Vienna on August 15th for a week with Catherine, Luke, Dan and Pauline. But we have put some ‘extra’ days in the schedule to be taken in emergencies, bad weather, tiredness or just because we like somewhere too much to want to move on. Bern is a mixture of the last two! So we have booked into a hotel for 2 nights and we’ll explore Bern more thoroughly tomorrow.
Helen’s track of the day: Nina Simone, Feeling Good. Woke up with this in my head today which is a very good sign though today it would more accurate to say feeling good, and feeling tired.
Now, I don’t want to seem pedantic…. and I’m also nervous because I don’t tend come out of these sorts of discussions particularly well, but I think the photo is of the Eiger and the Mönch, not the Jungfrau!
Also, and it’s just a small point, you appear to be heading west!
Ha I thought that too when looking at the map – definitely going in the wrong direction for Vienna!
Just testing! Now amended to the Mönch.
I have found that there is an Alpine history museum in Bern – so I should get my mountains sorted when we visit tomorrow. But as for the bike – I agree it does not seem to be heading for Vienna – but surely it is facing East not West?
Well hello again – thought I’d check in ( seeing as how we seem to have, finally, got the hang of this blog thingy) and make sure you aren’t slacking.
Having read the exchange over which mountain and which direction I have to say I am with Tim on this – by ‘this’…I mean, I usually come off poorly in such discussions, …nothing to do with actually noticing any of the salient detail….once again I use Grade IV CSE geography as the national average for 1974…… ..
(With me as an audience you could be somewhere in the Lake District and I would believe the whole lot!!!)
Whilst you are both weary and probably enjoying a very well earned and wonderful sojourn in the beautiful Bern, I feel recognition for the fact that I am typing this whilst lying down is in order. I have been looking through the quite marvellous array of pictures and then attempting to marry it up with the phenomenal (I don’t use that word at work very often) achievements described in the narrative. Quite frankly boys and girls, I am exhausted – I nearly didn’t make it up the stairs – my incentive for the descent will be ( I hope) a large glass of something chilled.
As for 10% of this and 1 in 2 ascents of that; one of my colleagues just began work on the mental health team, and I reckon she would find what’s between your ears to be in quite robust health – sounds absolutely fantastic – well done you both. I will now rise and belay myself to the banister for the move to the ground floor ……
Hello, glad everything’s going well!
I was wondering rather than going the wrong way why not go over the mountain? Only joking! Dad just showed me the bike moving at the top and you could move it to far as a joke so everyone things you’ve finished! Dad would fall for that! Anyway glad it’s all ok and good look for the rest of the trip!