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Two of the prettiest lakes in Switzerland, Lake Thun (Thunersee) and Lake Brienz (Brienzersee) are joined at the city of Interlaken. Aslowhand and I made an impromptu short trip on Thunersee this past weekend. Spring in Switzerland can be capricious, but the weather was glorious and mild. There were even people swimming in (what we later learned) ice cold water. Sunbathers could be seen getting an early start to their tans.
We started at the Kanu Klub Thun dock and paddled past large tourist boats to get out to the open water. It’s an easy paddle especially for two people and it was no problem to stop to take pictures or look at birds or name mountains.
That afternoon, the favored camping spot was currently occupied by three young men, stripped down to shorts and drinking beer. But we were patient. No way they were going to stay out once the sun began setting. While waiting, I got a chance to see more of Kanderdelta, the bird sanctuary where the Kander River runs into Thunersee. The spring flow was quite lively. I waded in the shallows, picked up rocks and admired the ring of mountains which embraces the lake on three sides. Sailboats plied the waters back and forth in front of the most majestic of mountains.
Photo by Aslowhand - The boat in the center of the picture is a sauna boat.
After some time, we took to the water again and the men were just leaving. Good timing. Plenty of light left in the day so setting up camp was a leisurely activity. Although it is not permitted, it is clear the swans and mallards are quite used to being fed. A pair of swans came begging. We were polite, but declined. The mallards are quite common and a pair came up to us at night around the campfire. A brave female approached Aslowhand but backed off at about two feet. I saw at least one cormorant swimming like a loon, half under the water. Also frequent were pairs of diving ducks that I could not quite make out. Aslowhand identified some as Great Crested Grebes.
I had checked luggage this trip and so was blessed with the presence of my 50+ year old Swiss Army knife. I used it to serve sections of bread, sausage and cheese eaten standing up while wandering around camp, looking at things, watching the boats on the river. There are no bears to worry about in Switzerland, although I’ve been informed that wolves are present, perhaps 20 packs. Beavers, which had once been extirpated, were now making a come back. Aslowhand reported seeing one much later that evening, swimming back and forth.
We set up our tents and made some adjustments in camp. The young men had left a burning fire as well as some organic trash I picked up to carry out. Aslowhand gathered more wood so we were well prepared for a cooking fire.
Photo by Aslowhand
For dinner, Aslowhand heated up leftover Älplermagronen he learned to make it from his grandmother. This classic Swiss meal is sometimes called Swiss Macaroni and Cheese, but that’s quite an insult. For one thing, it is cooked slowly with fresh vegetables and potatoes in a cast iron skillet. The cheese is a lot better too, in this case Raclette cheese of which I am most fond. I believe it also has butter in it. Swiss butter is superb.
A friend of mine from another forum wanted to know what we talked about (ie. Two people spending 24 per day with each other.) Well for one thing, neither of us needs to fill the air with talking. When we do talk it is to compare and contrast trip experiences, both of us over a life time. Occasionally we stumble trying to figure out what the other prefers which requires some negotiation as both of us try to be polite and considerate of the other. This results in some convoluted sentences, at least on my part, and we ended up laughing over this.
The temperature dropped as the sunset and even near the fire, with a jacket on, I was getting cold. Last year I was rather chilly all night so this night, armed with a battery powered heated jacket, two sleeping bags and layers of thermal underwear, I headed for my tent. As it turned out, I was plenty warm and did not need all that. I slept well.
The following morning, with the fire going and hot water on to boil, we had coffee (Aslowhand) and cocoa (me) while just staring at the lake and the clouds and contemplating life in general and gathering storm clouds in particular.
Photo by Aslowhand
Breakfast was easy, bread, cheese and sausage. Storm clouds backed off some, but another batch came rolling in. We packed up camp and headed back. One of the tricky things in paddling tandem when one is used to solo is communication. In the stern I can see how to make adjustments that may require assistance from the bow paddler. Aslowhand pointed out this lake is known for its capricious winds and waves. So we had to cooperate and use actual words, which as solo paddlers we had not needed to pack.
We got back to Kanu Klub Thun only to disturb several pairs of ducks sunbathing on the dock. At last I got to see, closeup, the ducks I was unable to identify: a pair of Common Merganzers.
We started at the Kanu Klub Thun dock and paddled past large tourist boats to get out to the open water. It’s an easy paddle especially for two people and it was no problem to stop to take pictures or look at birds or name mountains.
That afternoon, the favored camping spot was currently occupied by three young men, stripped down to shorts and drinking beer. But we were patient. No way they were going to stay out once the sun began setting. While waiting, I got a chance to see more of Kanderdelta, the bird sanctuary where the Kander River runs into Thunersee. The spring flow was quite lively. I waded in the shallows, picked up rocks and admired the ring of mountains which embraces the lake on three sides. Sailboats plied the waters back and forth in front of the most majestic of mountains.
Photo by Aslowhand - The boat in the center of the picture is a sauna boat.
After some time, we took to the water again and the men were just leaving. Good timing. Plenty of light left in the day so setting up camp was a leisurely activity. Although it is not permitted, it is clear the swans and mallards are quite used to being fed. A pair of swans came begging. We were polite, but declined. The mallards are quite common and a pair came up to us at night around the campfire. A brave female approached Aslowhand but backed off at about two feet. I saw at least one cormorant swimming like a loon, half under the water. Also frequent were pairs of diving ducks that I could not quite make out. Aslowhand identified some as Great Crested Grebes.
I had checked luggage this trip and so was blessed with the presence of my 50+ year old Swiss Army knife. I used it to serve sections of bread, sausage and cheese eaten standing up while wandering around camp, looking at things, watching the boats on the river. There are no bears to worry about in Switzerland, although I’ve been informed that wolves are present, perhaps 20 packs. Beavers, which had once been extirpated, were now making a come back. Aslowhand reported seeing one much later that evening, swimming back and forth.
We set up our tents and made some adjustments in camp. The young men had left a burning fire as well as some organic trash I picked up to carry out. Aslowhand gathered more wood so we were well prepared for a cooking fire.
Photo by Aslowhand
For dinner, Aslowhand heated up leftover Älplermagronen he learned to make it from his grandmother. This classic Swiss meal is sometimes called Swiss Macaroni and Cheese, but that’s quite an insult. For one thing, it is cooked slowly with fresh vegetables and potatoes in a cast iron skillet. The cheese is a lot better too, in this case Raclette cheese of which I am most fond. I believe it also has butter in it. Swiss butter is superb.
A friend of mine from another forum wanted to know what we talked about (ie. Two people spending 24 per day with each other.) Well for one thing, neither of us needs to fill the air with talking. When we do talk it is to compare and contrast trip experiences, both of us over a life time. Occasionally we stumble trying to figure out what the other prefers which requires some negotiation as both of us try to be polite and considerate of the other. This results in some convoluted sentences, at least on my part, and we ended up laughing over this.
The temperature dropped as the sunset and even near the fire, with a jacket on, I was getting cold. Last year I was rather chilly all night so this night, armed with a battery powered heated jacket, two sleeping bags and layers of thermal underwear, I headed for my tent. As it turned out, I was plenty warm and did not need all that. I slept well.
The following morning, with the fire going and hot water on to boil, we had coffee (Aslowhand) and cocoa (me) while just staring at the lake and the clouds and contemplating life in general and gathering storm clouds in particular.
Photo by Aslowhand
Breakfast was easy, bread, cheese and sausage. Storm clouds backed off some, but another batch came rolling in. We packed up camp and headed back. One of the tricky things in paddling tandem when one is used to solo is communication. In the stern I can see how to make adjustments that may require assistance from the bow paddler. Aslowhand pointed out this lake is known for its capricious winds and waves. So we had to cooperate and use actual words, which as solo paddlers we had not needed to pack.
We got back to Kanu Klub Thun only to disturb several pairs of ducks sunbathing on the dock. At last I got to see, closeup, the ducks I was unable to identify: a pair of Common Merganzers.
