I don’t think it’s a secret that we like to ride our bikes. It’s always fun and it allows you to get to so many places that simply take your breath away. Doing it with others makes it even more fun and sharing amazing days in the mountains with postcard views and amazing trails are unforgettable. Last Friday was one of those days.
One of our members mentioned a tour near Lucerne (Luzern) to me a few months ago. The tour sounded fun and it was in an area that I’d never really ridden before so I was pretty excited about getting to explore a new area. We had planned to do the tour in June but unfortunately it ended up getting rained off, finally it all came together last week and on Friday morning 4 of us met just outside Luzern to start the climb up to Fräkmüntegg.
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| A relaxed climb |
The climb was pleasant for the most part with only a couple of steeper ramps just before we got to the restaurant and lunch. We were constantly under the threat of rain on the climb, but it never really started until we got to the restaurant.
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| Just in case we forgot we were in Switzerland. |
We waited out the rain, had a little rest and some lunch before starting our first descent towards Alp Gschwänd. The descent started on fire road but after a short distance we veered right and got onto some nice singletrail which led us all the way down to Alp Gschwänd. After passing the Alp the trail started descending properly towards Brunni. The rain over lunch had left the rocks on this trail quite slippery, but it didn’t in any way detract from how much fun the trail was to ride. We had a quick stop before Brunni to repair a flat tyre before taking a right and traversing to a small chapel where the hike-a-bike up to Renggpass began.
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| On the way to Alp Gschwänd. |
Once we arrived at Renggpass the fun really began. The trail started off quite pedally with short descents and short but steep climbs thrown in to keep our heart rates up. The trail was at times flowy, at times technical but it demanded full concentration the whole time due to the steep drop to the right hand side. After a few kilometres of this the trail gets loose and rocky and starts descending via a series of perfect switchbacks.
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| One of the many Switchbacks on the descent |
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| The Switchbacks came complete with a view… if you dared to take your eyes off the trail! |
The narrowness of the trail forced us to ride carefully, but it rewarded us with huge smiles. We got back down to the lake for a nice relaxed ride back to Luzern and a drink by the Reuss before all heading to our respective homes with the memories of a great day playing in the mountains. I’m already waiting with the anticipation of a child at Christmas to get out and try some more trails in this area.
Back on the Road
After possibly one of the most fun trails of this year so far on Friday it was back on the road bike for a group ride with 10 other SAA members on Sunday morning. A slightly delayed start (due to me missing my train) saw us roll out of Stadelhofen shortly before 9am. We took quite a zig-zag route up towards Forch and Pfannenstiel before getting on some flatter roads which lead us to the slightly steeper hills of Zürioberland for a well deserved lunch. The pace was relaxed and despite putting in a reasonable number of vertical meters under our own pedal power we kept things social and enjoyed some great conversation along the way. After lunch the group descended towards Rapperswil and either rode or got the train home. It was a really enjoyable morning made better by a great group and perfect weather (not too hot, not too cold). There are still a number of months before winter gets a hold of Switzerland which leaves plenty time for more sociable rides. I’m looking forward to the next one.
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| Road riding doesn’t get much better than this. |
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| This is surprisingly close to Zurich city centre. |
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| All this activity makes it OK to splash out and enjoy a burger from time to time! 🙂 |
With weekends like this every weekend sometimes you do have to wonder if we really are dreaming. Can life really be this good? I think someone better pinch me… but, I’m not sure I want to wake up from this dream.
Next weekend it’s all going to happen again. Saturday we have a bike tour in the Rhine Gorge and Safien Valley and on Sunday we will be running our last mountain bike skills course of the year. So far the weather forecast is looking good and it’s shaping up to be another great weekend for Swiss Alpine Adventure.
Winter Courses
While it is still summer and our sporting activities still revolve around two wheeled fun and games… We’ve already started planning the SAA winter. We released details for our Avalanche courses in December and January this past weekend and all places sold out within 24 hours! We have more plans for some fun activities off the beaten track during the course of the winter so stay tuned to our meetup group for more details. If you’ve not gotten a place on one of the Avalanche courses remember to stick your name on the waiting list just in case one comes free.
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| We’re already making plans for winter. |
