Day 18 Hike in Canton Graubünden

I know it gets old to say this, but, Graubünden (listen), is amazingly beautiful, and a must visit for anyone coming to Switzerland. I must admit, this was another short hike, but, what I did differently this time was drive through the canton and take photographs of different spots that might be interesting.

Part I: On to hiking

The hike took part in the Poschiavo Valley, leading up to, and going around Lago di Poschiavo, or Lake of Poschiavo. Coming from the village of Brusio on the way up, the view is narrow and surrounded by mountains, as it is a true valley.

Heading up to the lake it was uphill all the way, not steep, but steady, and then a nice flat walk around the lake, then back down.

So, for this hike, it is about the images at the lake and the train that comes into down, and goes to the border in Brusio.

My first clear view of the lake, with the amazing mountains in the background.

Off to the right of the lake (not so easy to see) is an old home that is just on the edge. It cannot be entered any longer and really the only view of it is from the other side of the lake.

As one approaches the entrance to the old home mentioned above, there is a gate that clearly marks it as being private property and no one should enter. I imagine, even though it is uninhabitable any longer, one day it must have been amazing to live there.

Outside of the hiking trail, it seems most everything is private property. I imagine they want to protect the integrity of the land, which is highly understandable.

When heading back into the town, I saw the train coming so I ran to get a picture of it as it neared the station. It is a beautiful site and just another great example of how amazing Switzerland transportation is.

 After getting back in my car, and going further down into Brusio, I remembered a big circle where the train comes around and loops down low. I suspect this was built with two purposes: one, because there is a drop off from the one side and I take it the train would need to be equipped with solid breaks, and two, because it is interesting and beautiful to look at..

Part II: A morning in Sondrio

After completing the hike I went back to my hotel for a rest in the evening. I stayed in Sondrio, Italy, which was really great. A beautiful town nestled in the mountains. Here are some pictures I took the next morning before heading back into Switzerland for my photo drive home.

 Part III: Photo drive home through Graubünden

As mentioned above, I made this a bit different of a trip. Knowing I had a long drive on Saturday, and followed by another long drive home Sunday. I decided to use it as an opportunity to take some photos along the way throughout the canton, at least until I got to a major highway.

While there were not many spots to stop and take photos headed up to Bernina Pass, I did pick up my camera and without looking just clicked. This is what I got. I thought it was a cool looking image in that it shows movement, but more importantly, it gives a brief glimpse into what the area looks like, without giving too much away.  I do see that a dried water drop is going across my windshield, maybe I should have fixed that?!?!?!

Bernina Pass

Coming up on Bernina Pass, was a treat. The views are amazing, and while it was colder (4c at one point) with the bright sun, it was no problem in my car with the top down.

This picture was taken close to the top. I thought the view was just amazing, and the stillness perfect. Every once in a while a car would drive by, but then a bunch of motorcycles out enjoying the winding roads.

 Shortly after reaching the top, as the pass starts to wind down, there is a ski resport. Then, just past that, a brief snapshot of just how much snow they get. I was standing tall when I took this picture and I was not more than half the height. This cut out wall of snow is at least 4 meters high, if not more. I suspect at some point it was even higher before the melting of the snow.

A short distance down the road was this lovely spot where the train passes, but also a view of the mountains off in the distance. A couple of things to point out. Off to the right, while I was photographing, a small avalanche happened. It was tiny, but the loud bang of the snow going off the cliff onto the ground below echoed quite loudly. That was the first time I ever experienced such a thing.

The second thing worth noting, in the bottom left side of this picture, you will notice a brown area, some snow to the left, and then more brown. Well, I stepped nicely in and over the snow to get to the brown area on the left. When I wanted to return, with all the people watching (yes, there were many others taking pictures), and while holding both cameras, I decided to jump over the snow. All went well until my foot decided that the brown area was quite slippery and i went down on my backside. Other than the humiliation, I didn't have any problems until I sat in the car and that was when my hip bone started to ache. Note to self: stop being fancy!!!

Just before getting to St. Moritz, there is a small town called Celerina/Schlarigna. I thought this old church, the San Gian church was beautiful so i took a distant shot of it.

When getting into St. Moritz I thought I could take many photos of the city, but with my hip hurting, and the idea that I didn't really know the area, I decided to take just one and then move on. So, I managed to stop and take a photo of Evangelische Kirche St. Moritz Bad, a religious building erected in the 19th century.

 Part IV: About Graubünden
As mentioned at the top, Graubünden is a really beautiful canton. It clearly has a lot of history, but what I also liked about it a lot, is how small the villages are and how much space there is between them. I love that it has three official languages,  German, Romansh, Italian. Like it's neighbor Ticino, it is clear the Italian culture plays a major part of its lifestyle. Of course, the further north you go in the canton, it switches to German.

Graubünden is the 18th canton as an addition to Switzerland. formed in 1803. Note, a common year for cantons being added. (you will have to read on to see the rest, but as you know, the canton just before this one, was also 1803, Aargau.

There are 193,388 residents in Graubünden and the size of it (7,105.2 square kilometers or 2,743.3 square miles) makes it the largest canton in Switzerland.

Some of the things I find interesting about Swtizerland as I do these hikes and get to know the country are:

• There is a lot of open land in Switzerland
• There is a lot of culture and quite diverse throughout the country
• That while it seems to get old looking at mountains, the truth is, it never gets old. It is an amazingly beautiful country and I now understand why so many people travel here for holiday.