Dwight Peck's personal website

A ritual annual walk to Poêle Chaud
(in Switzerland)

Winter 2006-2007 spent waiting around for winter

You may not find this terribly rewarding unless you're included here, so this is a good time for casual and random browsers to turn back before they get too caught up in the sweep and majesty of the proceedings and can't let go

Not a year should go by without at least two, or even three, walks up the Pointe de Poêle Chaud (1628 meters), snuggled in alongside La Dôle overlooking Lake Geneva.

Lost again in the forests of the Jura, Dr Pirri ponders where he may have gone wrong and resorts to the solace of the bottle, as today's additional participant, Christine, looks on with bemusement and - it may be - doubt, 11 March 2007.

Dr Pirri fighting gravity. We're heading for the Pointe de Poêle Chaud, but you'd never guess that from Dr Pirri's route-finding. But "up" is "up", so this may well be progress.

Our additional participant exults, as we emerge out of the forest onto the scraped-off ski runs coming down from La Dôle, in brilliant sunshine. And at last, we know where we are. We're in the middle of a downhill ski run. With snowboarding teenagers screeching past.

Sorting out water bottles, as we prepare to dash up across the ski runs on our ponderous old, wired-up, but serviceable, snowshoes.

Two members of our party approaching the Col de Porte, as the narrator remains discreetly in the background, taking photos and catching his breath.

So, okay, Dean Pirri beat us to the Col de Porte again. But he had inspirational help this time.

The view from the Col de Porte on a sunny, windy day, 11 March 2007, up towards La Dôle.

The Additional Participant having a good look down towards Lake Geneva from the Col de Porte.

Former President Pirri preparing to leap.
Leap, Dr Pirri! Leap!

Hikers near the Col de Porte on a windy March day in 2007, bound for the Pointe de Poêle Chaud. Preparing to leap.

A last look up towards La Dôle, as we head off in the other direction.

Another last look up towards La Dôle, as we head off in the other direction.

A last last look up towards La Dôle, as we still head off in the other direction.

Hikers at the amateur radio French-Swiss relay station La Glutte on top of Poêle Chaud (1628m)

We're digging out a few cheese rinds as a rough kind of lunch, with the radar facility on La Dôle peeking through from the horizon.

Universal cheese-stoked merriment before starting off down the other side towards the Pointe de Fin Château

The narrator (left, in the red furfie) very pleased by the participation of our Additional Participant today

Do not fail to note that fantastic blue pompon on Dr Pirri's hat. He sewed that onto it himself.

Two hikers viewing the Pointe de Fin Château, and all of Switzerland beyond, before leaping.

Our additional participant is on snowshoes for the first time and finding that it all comes very easily . . .

. . . except when from time to time you fall boom.

And then leap up again.

Back down through the forest now, somewhat painfully for the older members of the party in the steeper gulleys, to make the loop back to Givrine. Towards the end of the Switzerland winter that never came.

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