Raspille-Tieche river near Crans-Montana
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Blick magazine has shed some some light on the largest-ever chunk of gold found in Switzerland, reportedly found in the Tieche river near Crans-Montana by a 34-year-old German hiker in September. But the Valais cantonal geologist says maybe it’s a nugget someone lost: there’s no gold in that river.
The gold nugget is 7cm long, 3.5cm wide and weights 128.5 grams.
The rivers in this area have not until now been known for carrying gold. And it’s possible they never will be. Geologist Jean-Daniel Rouiller told Le Nouvelliste, the Valais news service, that it’s quite simply impossible because the right bank of the Rhone is limestone and gold isn’t part of the rock there.
Italian dies on Matterhorn late Sunday afternoon
Update 11:50 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The past four days have taken a high toll in deaths and injuries in Switzerland: a well-known wine writer was murdered by her former companion who then committed suicide early Friday, three mountain climbers lost their lives in falls and four youths on a joyride are in serious condition after the car they stole rolled several times.
Murder victim and ex known in food and wine circles
Barbara Dittus-Meier, 47, former editor of Vinum, the European wine magazine, and a widely respected wine authority in Switzerland, was shot at her home shortly after midnight Friday in Baden, not far from Zurich, by her ex-companion, Rui A, a Portuguese chef and owner of the Pergola restaurant in Bad Zurzach, 43. He then turned the gun on himself. Neighbours alerted the police after hearing several shots. The three daughters of Dituss-Meier, ages 14 to 20, were asleep at the time of the deaths, but were awakened by the shots and they discovered the bodies. (more on editor Ellen Wallace’s wine blog, Among the Vines).
Argovian police had previously received calls for domestic violence; the couple had been together for several years but had recently split up.
Youths steal car, lose control and flip it
Fourth local youths stole a car in Stalenried in canton Valais in the early hours of Sunday 21 August, around 02:00, and headed on the cantonal road for Gspon when the driver lost control of the car on a bend.
It rolled over several times, 150 metres down a sloping pasture, before coming to a stop. All four were taken to hospital with serious injuries: two were flown to the Hopital de l’Ile in Bern and two others were taken by ambulance to Visp.
They are 18, 16, 14 and 13 years old.
Fire destroys new barn at its inauguration
A new building described by canton Vaud police as an “ultra-modern” barn that was to house 160 animals starting next week in Grens, Vaud, caught fire and was destroyed Saturday afternoon at 15:00 during its inauguration.
Several dozen people and about 15 animals were there to celebrate the completion of the barn when it caught fire, for reasons that are not yet known. The building housed more than 800 large rolls of hay and straw, and it went up in flames quickly. The animals were taken to safety and no one was injured. The 160 animals scheduled to winter there are currently up in the Copettes alpage near Givrins.
Separate accidents kill 3 in Swiss Alps
An Italian died on the east face of the Matterhorn at 17:30 Sunday and two climbers died in separate accidents 19 and 20 August, bringing to four the number of people who died in one week while walking or climbing in canton Valais.
Police say the Italian was one of a group of five climbing the Matterhorn/Cervin Sunday 21 August when he fell 500 metres to his death on the east face of the mountain, shortly before the Solvay hut, at 4,030 metres. The group was not roped together. Police are trying to formally identify the climber.
A 43-year-old German man who was climbing the Lagginhorn mountain on his own 19 August fell 50 metres to his death, at 3,600 metres. His family became worried when he hadn’t returned home by 20:30 and they called police. A helicopter search failed to find him during the night but found his body when the search was taken up again Saturday morning.
Two Austrian climbers headed up the south face of the Dent Blanche Saturday morning. As they started down, on the south peak at 4,000 metres, at 09:30, one of them, a 27-year-old man, fell 400 metres to his death, for reasons that are not clear.
A 15-year-old Mauritian tourist lost his life earlier in the week while hiking near Martigny-La Combe.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – A 15-year-old boy on a walk in the Alps with a family member and friend fell 50 metres to his death Thursday afternoon 18 August at 16:30. The trio paused for a rest and the youth walked off to a nearby waterfall to cool off. When he didn’t return after a few minutes the others went to look for him.
They were hiking in the “Plan de l’Au”, area near Champex d’en Bas. Police were alerted at 20:00 when the other two had still not found the young man. A rescue operation worked until 04:00, then began looking again at 07:00 but it was only at 13:00 that his body was spotted by a helicopter.
The youth, who was Mauritian, had been vacationing in the region.
Viper in the French Jura, near Geneva: learn to recognize them (photo ©2011 Shirley Curran)
Ed. note: Shirley Curran, who writes the GenevaLunch book reviews, lives in the French Jura, not far from Geneva.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – We have a rather unexpected visitor in the garden this year.We call her Vincent la vipère, and we take care to warn neighbours who have dogs, cats or small children that they should steer clear, as we do.
My husband first spotted her near his hand when he was doing a bit of weeding in a wall that has lots of holes and crevices. Neighbours had found their kitten playing with a baby one, so we know they are back in the area after a quiet stretch.
Vincent is a vipère aspic. Her bite can be mortal, especially for small animals. She lives on lizards or small mammals and spends a long time digesting them and just basking , coiled up in the sun on a patch of pine needles.
Viper, French Jura, coiled among the rocks, a favourite spot (photo ©2011 Shirley Curran)
We have both been bitten in the past, fortunately, in each case, by early season ones that were half asleep.
The bite is a couple of very vivid puncture marks and scratches going down from them. The effect is nasty for a few days but if you aren’t dead in about three hours, you are likely to live.
I once had to take a neigbour to the doctor after he had been bitten—and he survived, even though he had recently had open-heart surgery. Of course, you should seek medical help as fast as possible.
Local pharmacies stock anti-venim serum. When the children were small, we kept the anti-venim serum in the fridge, just in case. However, it has a shelf life and we finally stopped worrying. They are a protected species as they have been hunted to make the serum, and hunted in some communes in France because a ‘prime’ was offered for any that were captured or killed.
The harmless grass snake is beautiful, swimming in local ponds in the French Jura
There is a natural hostility to snakes and they are mercilessly killed when people see them. Above all, should anyone be bitten, it is important to limit movement, to stay calm and to get to a hospital or to a medical centre as fast as possible.
I believe it is a long time since there was a viper fatality in France and that was a small girl who went into the bushes to go to the toilet. She was too far from help to be saved.
Our Vincent is full grown, about two feet long. She’s very impressive when she is disturbed and slides down into one of the holes in the wall. We live near a quarry and saw them frequently when we first moved here 30 years ago.
Local swimmers, French Jura
I think all the building in the area discouraged them, though they are said to be everywhere in France in hedges and rough rocky areas. They don’t have a very long season, as they hibernate when the temperature is below 12°C.
The marks on their backs can vary considerably. Vincent has just dark bars in a pattern, not the very distinctive V marks that people know about. She is of a breed that the French sometimes call la vipère rouge but she is grayish in colour with distinctive orange under her tail and little orange eyes.
We have lots of the other type of common snake such as the couleuvre à collier, or grass snakes, in our ponds, but they are completely harmless, except to their prey, and very beautiful, especially when they swim.
So if you are wandering in the Jura mountains, be aware that they are around, very well camouflaged and very dangerous.
Click on images to view larger
Rainbow 19 June near Chamoson, canton Valais: expect some showers or cloudiness at the start of the weekend, then sun and warm weather Sunday
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The Lake Geneva region and canton Valais can expect a bit of mixed weather late Friday and Saturday, with temperatures in the 11-23C range. Bring out the sun cream for Sunday, though, when temperatures will climb to 28C and not a cloud in sight, we’re promised.
You won’t run out of things to do, from watching regattas on Lake Geneva to flea markets to seeing how wine is made, if you check out our weekend events listings. Add in a good dose of exercise by trying out the new Swiss hiking/biking/skating official Swisstopo maps that you can get online and as handy mobile apps, or head for some of canton Vaud’s beautiful outdoor public swimming pools when the air warms up Sunday.
Skating trails crisscross Switzerland, along with hiking, cycling, VTT and canoeing trails
BERN, SWITZERLAND – Swiss Topo, the government mapping service, has just released the latest version of its set of online Swiss maps, which are faster and more complete, with the entire range of scales now available, from 1 :25,000 to 1 : million, in English, French, Italian and German.
The maps are regularly updated, so the online maps, for an annual subscription of CHF49 the first year and CHF29 in subsequent years, don’t become outdated.
They include not only roads and geographic details but aerial images, historical maps, the official Swiss hiking trails and the Switzerland Mobility 20,000km interactive maps that allow you to plan and trace your route on the wealth of official bicycle, walking, VTT, skating and canoeing trails (normal price, CHF30/year). They also include POI, points of interest, such as youth hostels, Schweizer Familie lodging and Friends of Nature houses.
Canton Valais, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – A 44-year-old German tourist and his three children were found safe after getting lost hiking in the Blatten/Naters region of canton Valais.
According to authorities, the man and the kids had gone on a hike on 18 April but didn’t get back as planned. The wife then called the authorities and the search was launched.
The three kids were found safe near the Aletsch Glacier, although with mild hypothermia, at around 8:30 yesterday Tuesday 19 April. The children said their father had gone searching for help.
The man was later found in Riederalp suffering from mild hypothermia. He was taken by helicopter to a hospital in Visp.
Discover the wine trail of La Cote in canton Vaud during a four-hour guided hike.
Location: Allaman, Vaud
Link out: http://www.asgip.ch./?id=27&news=216&…
Date: 30 Apr 2011
A themed hike dedicated to those who want to walk, and eat!
Location: Neighboring France
Link out: http://www.changezdair.com/fr/index.php?option=…
Date: 24 Oct 2010
A guided-, themed-hike sponsored by the Swiss Society of Historical Guides. An almost 4 hour hike.
Location: Marin, Neuchatel
Link out: http://www.asgip.ch/27-198-A_la_poursuite_de_la…
Date: 23 Oct 2010
Saint Gervais, France (GenevaLunch) – The 3,000 residents in the French valley of Saint Gervais (map) love their mountains most of the time, with the Alps, including Mont Blanc, making the area a tourist attraction. But nervousness set in, in late July 2010, when a lake with no outlet was discovered under the Tête-Rousse glacier: 65,000m3 of water that could flood the valley. This week, engineers began drilling a hole to drain the lake and avoid a possible catastrophe.
Sion, Switzerland (GenevaLunch.com) - A 20-year-old German who was hiking near Saas Fee Monday 26 July fell 100 metres to his death, say Valais police. He and a companion were walking on the Britannia-Plattjen path when, for reasons not yet clear, they left the path to climb higher and the youth slipped. He died at the scene. Police have opened an investigation to determine the cause of the accident.
String of deaths in high mountains in past week
Chamonix, France (GenevaLunch.com) – Two British climbers fell 300 metres to their deaths Monday while climbing the Dent du Géant, a peak that is just short of 4,000 metres, not far from Chamonix, over the border from Switzerland. An investigation into the deaths of the 38-year-old man and 20-year-old woman is trying to determine the cause of death, although, according to the Guardian, falling boulders and avalanches appear to have been ruled out.
Two days of hiking the Bois-Clos in Lausanne, build your own lodge and sleep well after a full day. For all ages, including children, and physical levels.
Location: Lausanne, Vaud
Link out: http://www.lausanne-tourisme.ch/UploadedASP/211…
Start date: 6 Jul 2010
End date: 15 Jul 2010
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Two hikers in their thirties were attacked Sunday afternoon by a herd of cows in the Jura, near Reculet in the Crêtes du Jura, at about 1,700 metres.
They were airlifted out by Rega, whose helicopters scared off the animals, several dozen of which encircled the two people.
Some of the animals had their heads lowered, just centimetres from the faces of the two hikers.
The woman was hospitalized at the HUG university hospitals in Geneva with serious facial injuries, but her life is not in danger, according to Rega, whose doctors were lowered to the field once the cows were frightened off. The man was not hospitalized.
Details of the attack and how the couple found themselves in this situation were not immediately clear, says Rega.
Hiking near cows at Crozets, in the Jura (photo: Shirley Curran)
Facing a cow in its pasture: avoid threatening it by staying calm - back away, avert your eyes (photo: Shirley Curran)
It’s very unusual for cows to attack hikers, reports the air rescue company, which performed more than 14,000 rescues in 2009, a large number of them mountain rescues.
The number of such incidents has grown, however, since changes were made in recent years to the way cows are raised, and stricter measures were adopted to protect the animals’ natural environment.
This is the season when cows and young calves are out in the pastures, as well as bulls.
Some of their grazing land crosses hiking trails.
Rega’s June issue of its monthly magazine offers several useful articles for anyone planning mountain walks, including tips for hikers who come across animals:
- stay calm
- do not leave the hiking trails
- never touch a young calf
- keep a respectful distance from the animals: 20-50 metres minimum
- watch out for menacing signs: head lowered, hoof scratching the dirt
- do not look the animals in the eye
- don’t wave a stick at them and keep your dog on a leash
- do not turn your back to them.
If despite this you are attacked:
- take your dog off its leash
- hit the cow hard on the muzzle with a stick
- remain calm and call Rega: 1414
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – A woman from Versonnex, Pays de Gex in France, age 69, died Monday 19 April while climbing the Salève near Geneva, and her 71-year-old mountain-climbing companion is hospitalized with fractures, the Tribune de Geneve reports. The two experienced climbers were roped together, but for reasons that are not yet clear the woman fell 50 metres.
A 34-year-old British woman who lives in France was killed Sunday near Zermatt when she was caught by an avalanche. She was part of a group of four people who were ski touring with a guide when the avalanche struck.
Title: Historical hike
Location: Franches-Montagnes
Link out: Click here
Description: A 3-hour easy guided hike, followed by a slide presentation.
Date: 2010-02-07
Title: Castle hopping/hike
Location: Nyon, Prangins and more
Link out: Click here
Description: Spend the day seeing the castles in beautiful Vaud. An 8-km hike and tour that takes approximately 4.5 hours.
Date: 2010-02-27
Swiss Alps: a fine day ahead
Swiss sheep, canton Valais, May 2009, before a summer on top of the mountain
Update 09:00 Saturday 10 October Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The warmest October day since 1910 was a treat earlier this week, with temperatures staying above 10C even at night and rising to 30C (Meteoswiss explains why, in French).
Good weather ahead in the Lake Geneva region
A day of rain in the Lake Geneva area Thursday cooled things down and the leaves have begun to fall, but the weekend promises a good dose of fine weather, mixed with occasional showers. At 09:00 Saturday morning it is raining everywhere in Switzerland, it appears, but the forecasters are still promising it will mostly disappear and we’ll have sunshine: have faith!
It’s relatively warm, with temperatures rising to 18C, perfect for outdoor markets, planting new wild grasses, just reading a suspenseful novel in a sunny spot, cooking up a storm with seasonal foods, or hiking through the vineyards.
What’s on in Geneva and Lausanne, the rest of the region
Sunday is Expat Expo in Geneva, the second of the region’s two big fairs with exhibitors and more, for the English-speaking population. Head out of town, under two hours from Geneva, to watch the sheep come down from the high alps, in Champéry Saturday morning. Head for the circus Saturday night: the famous Swiss Knie circus has started its 2009 programme on the lakefront in Lausanne.
Be sure to check the GenevaLunch events pages for what’s on throughout the region (click on a date on the calendar to see full display).
Title: Hiking under the lights of the vineyard
Location: Corcelles-pres-Concise (foot of the Jura, near Yverdon)
Link out: Click here
Description: A guided tour of vineyards near Yverdon, accompanied by tales of legends of the region and wine tasting. CHF15
Date: 08 Oct 2009
Title: Guided tour through the Salt valley
Location: Bex, Vaud
Link out: Click here
Description: A 3.5-hour guided hike to discover the “salt of life” trail in Canton Vaud.
Date: 26 Sep 2009
Title: Lausanne walking day
Location: Lausanne, Vaud
Link out: Click here
Description: A day dedicated to the art of walking and Nordic walking for everyone in the family.
Date: 13 Sep 2009
Title: Historical hike around Lake Geneva
Location: Nyon-Prangins, Vaud
Link out: Click here
Description: Discover how Lake Geneva has helped develop the Nyons and Prangins region. A guided historical hike for all!
For more info: +41 (0) 22 365 66 00.
Start Date: 12 Sep 2009
End Date: 13 Sep 2009
Title: Guided tour through the Salt valley
Location: Bex, Vaud
Link out: Click here
Description: A 3.5-hour guided hike to discover the “salt of life” in Canton Vaud.
Date: 29 Aug 2009
Title: Historical hike (songs included)
Location: Yverdon, Vaud
Link out: Click here
Description: A historical hike of Yverdon, with a guide dressed in costume and… singing. (German singing available by request).
Sponsored by the Association of Swiss-Patrimony Guides and Interpreters (Asgip).
Date: 30 Aug 2009
Title: Evening hike: searching for Alpine rocks in the Jura
Location: Burtigny, Vaud
Link out: Click here
Description: Evening hike searching for Burtigny rocks -Alpine rocks- in the Jura.
Date: 05 Aug 2009
Title: Moonlight hikes around Switzerland
Location: various venues
Link out: Click here
Description: Suisse Rando, the Swiss hikers association is organizing a series of hikes by moonlight with different levels of difficulty.
Date: 4-5 July 2009 (several during the year)
Title: Hiking under the moon
Location: Corcelles-pres-Concise (foot of the Jura, near Yverdon)
Link out: Click here
Description: A guided tour of vineyards near Yverdon, accompanied by tales of legends of the region and wine tasting. CHF15
Date: 09 Jul 2009
Title: Hiking under the lights of the vineyard
Location: Corcelles-pres-Concise (foot of the Jura, near Yverdon)
Description: A guided tour of vineyards near Yverdon, accompanied by tales of legends of the region and wine tasting. CHF15
Date: 04 Jun 2009
Title: Historical hike (songs included)
Location: Yverdon, Vaud
Link out: Click here
Description: A historical hike of Yverdon, with a guide dressed in costume and… singing. (German singing available by request).
Sponsored by the Association of Swiss-Patrimony Guides and Interpreters (Asgip).
Date: 31 May 2009
