Hiking at Leysin

Today (yes, it's a rare day that I actually blog something on the same day) I went for a hike at Leysin.

I wanted to really hike up a mountain and my little hikes up La Dole near where we live didn't quite fit the bill, so I found a walk from Leysin village (1200m) up to the shiny modern restaurant at La Berneuse (2048m).

I didn't start my climb until midday since Leysin is about an hour and a half from Nyon, and by then the sun was really hot and it was really humid from some recent rain so not long after setting off I was already hot and sweating. It was a really steep climb to the top and even though I felt like I was pacing myself I got to the top in only about an hour.

Once there I was quite exhausted and I grabbed a drink and some chips in the restaurant (standard stuff inside despite the shiny exterior) and followed this up with some "trail mix" while sitting on a rocky outcrop looking over the valley.

Feeling replenished I started the downward hike, stopping to take photos of some of the mountain bike riders following the downhill course.

I walked down to Lac d'Ai and took some more photos of the little cabins and the lake before continuing to Lac d'Mayen where I felt compelled to have a coffee at the refuge there to support the local economy.

After setting off again I quickly realised I'd taken a wrong turn but, considering how quickly my walk was going, decided to continue on for a longer hike.

I'm really pleased to have done this as it was actually a really interesting hike over the Brion area where there was some amazing rocky formations.

At some point, however, the clouds that had building during the afternoon started to make ominous noises and the wind started to pick up. I rushed to put my camera in my bag and put on my rain jacket. I then quickly hiked down the hill to Les Fers and sheltered under the eves of the restaurant there while the rain poured down.

Eventually I got bored of waiting and finished up hiking down the road to Leysin village where I was glad I had left the car parked underground allowing  me take off my wet jacket and shoes and socks before getting in the car to drive home.

I'd love to go back to Leysin and do some more hiking, although next time I might catch the lift up and do more hiking around the various peaks you can reach from there.