Le fou and Lac Des Vaux from La Tzoumaz

Escape to the sun. North of the Alps, the weather forecast today was very modest. Banks of fog, a dense cloud cover, and hardly any sunshine. In the south, however, and also in the inner Alps, pure sunshine. So, last night, I spontaneously planned a tour in Valais. Once again, Valais lived up to its reputation as a sunny spot. In 1 hour 40 minutes, I reached La Tzoumaz, just after the Rhône Bend near Martigny. The town lies at an altitude of about 1500 meters, after a picture-perfect mountain ride. Countless hairpin bends, numerous tunnels, and steep roads. It was a glorious day in the sun, and I kept wondering how it was possible that absolutely none of the clouds north of the Alps reached the Valais over the mountain peaks. This weather barrier is simply fascinating, and I'm fortunate enough to be able to move from one side to the other relatively quickly. Steel-blue skies in Valais, and not a single ray of sunshine at home when I drove back home in the afternoon. The tour began shortly after 9 a.m. in La Tzoumaz and took me into the Verbier ski area. My highest point was the top station of the Les Attelas gondola at 2,734 m. However, Verbier has even higher lifts, which I'm familiar with from winter. I used to snowboard here often. The highest point is the gondola up Mont Fort at 3,329 m. At Les Attelas, in the shadow of its high neighbor Mont Gelé at 3,023 m, I wasn't feeling quite warm at 4°C, and I briefly considered digging out my gloves. I decided against it and quickly trudged downhill with my hands in my pockets, back into the sun. Everything's OK again 🥳🤩 In the sun and away from the ridge, it was much more comfortable ☀️👌🏼 At Lac des Vaux, I saw someone building a fire, even though there was no wood anywhere (above the tree line) 🤔 Very strange. Shortly after, I was able to make up a story about it. Upon closer inspection of the crystal-clear lake, I saw lots of fish. So, he had brought wood to the lake to prepare his lunch 🐟😉 Towards the end of the hike, I entered a sparse mountain forest on a sunny slope again. What a smell it is in the warmth 😍🫶🏼👌🏼🤩 I had to stop several times as another warm wave of essential oils from the needles and trees wafted through the slopes. Deep breaths. At home I had to look for the larch and pine spray 😊🙋🏻‍♂️