The number of sunny days Zurich enjoys in November are few and far between; I think we've just had 4 or 5 days without clouds, fog, and general grayness. That's why earlier this week, when I woke to see the sun shining, I knew it was "the day" for me; in looking over my topo maps of Switzerland, the climb up the
Etzel Pass (or Etzel Kulm for you German speakers) looked to be a great bike ride and -- a
huge bonus -- I could do it from our apartment without having to take a train or bus anywhere.
Just an aside: I love being able to train right out my back door. Time spent sitting in a car or traveling
to get to your training spot is lost training time, in my estimation; when living in VA, I hated the long drives to the "real" hills close to Charlottesville. There were a few times where my time spent in the car eclipsed my time spent training! My experience in Zurich hasn't been like that, since we live minutes from some great hiking trails and the lake is about a 10 minute portage from our home.
Returning to my original thought . . . Etzel Pass wasn't just minutes from our apartment, but it was within about a 90 minute bike ride and so with the sun shining and the crisp November air to keep me cool, I hopped on the bike and started the ride. This is the view I had before me as I biked around the mostly flat terrain around Lake Zurich:
Slowly but surely, the town of Rapperswil came into view; this would signal the start of the climbing for my ride:
Finally I could clearly see the castle Rapperswil is famous for, and knew that my warm-up was just about over.
Just spectacular scenery. I wish I could share some photos of my climb
up Etzel Pass and to St Meinrad chapel and the
guest house at the top, but all my energies were on keeping my bike moving the 2,000 feet of elevation change from the base to the top. The climb was paved, but steep . . . sort of like Sherando (for you Virginia riders!) without the nasty boulders. It probably took me 45 minutes or maybe even an hour. I did stop for a few pictures while on the top, however:
First the chapel:
Then some of the view from on top, this one to the South into the heart of the Alps:
This one is back North, from where I had come:
And, just as a cherry on top, the view as I returned home through Rapperswil -- such a picturesque place!
I've heard rumours of singletrack from Etzel all the way down, but I didn't have time this week to explore that . . . it leaves something on the table for me later this year!