Dwight Peck's personal website

April in the Jura mountains

Our winters are nothing like what they once were.


The winter of 2010-2011 was crap for snow in our region, and we must try to learn to adapt.

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.

Some scenic solo walks in April 2011

Mont Blanc from the apartment in Bassins. We're moving away in May. Hunh.

La Barillette, 2 April

This is one of the forestry roads that winds back and forth up the Grande Côte de Bonmont, the forests overlooking Lake Geneva; we've started at about 950m on the Route Blanche, the road between Nyon and St-Cergue.

These are the cliffs, probably an old quarry, called the Rochers de Pierre Lente at about 1300m. A dead end for us today -- back up to the left we go.

An old track leads up a bit higher. Normally, in early April, this would not be snowfree.

The café-restaurant of La Barillette appears at about 1450m. Until a few years ago there was an active downhill ski traffic here, topping out at the lift station just behind the tree on the left.

That's the lift station there, forlorn in its idleness.

The view of Lake Geneva and Mont Blanc from the terrasse of the café

The village of Nyon below with the zoom on

Mont Blanc, zoomed

Les Diablêrets farther along the lake

The café

Back down toward St-Cergue by way of the former ski runs

Pointe de Poêle Chaud, 9 April

No paths for us, we've taken the direttissima route straight up the forests on the northwest side from Couvaloup-de-Crans.

Topping out of the forest, with the summit in view

The wind gauge on top of the Pointe de Poêle Chaud

This is the shortwave radio station at the summit at 1628m.

La Dôle across the way

La Dôle in all of its radar-station glory

The Chalet de la Dôle below, at 1439m, now functioning as a full service summer buvette and restaurant

La Barillette and its Swisscom towers, from the Pointe de Poêle Chaude, Lake Geneva (Lac Léman) behind

The Dents du Midi, scene of our former hijinks, probably never to be recaptured at this stage


Feedback and suggestions are welcome if positive, resented if negative, . All rights reserved, all wrongs avenged. Posted 4 September 2011, revised 6 September 2014.


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