Switzerland Part Two

November 03, 2024

Switzerland Part Two

September 29 - October 25

In hindsight, we were happy with our decision to extend the leg of the Switzerland trip from October 1st to October 25th. During those additional three weeks, we had a mix of rainy stretches and some beautiful fall days. We soaked up each day before returning home.

During the first couple of weeks of October, we endured many overcast and rainy days. It was pretty gloomy for long stretches, and our rest days (or forced rest days) were mostly occupied by short hikes or walks, chores like grocery shopping or laundry, and reading or gaming. Utah is generally such a sunny state that I did not anticipate how much the cloudy weather could affect my mood!

We were also beginning to internalize the longevity of climbing and traveling. This was a big reason we changed our flights the first time while in Rocklands (initially, we moved our Switzerland flights from November 18th to October 1st, and then again changed from October 1st to October 25th; not the most economical, I know). Our original plan was to climb abroad for about six months and then move into our truck and camper, travel, and climb domestically for about a year and a half. However, going into this trip, we knew we relied heavily on board climbing/training/weight lifting to maintain fitness. We hoped our years of training would allow us to keep our climbing fitness and feel strong while only outdoor climbing. Still, over the months of just climbing outside, we have felt negative ramifications (feeling weaker, injury-prone, and lower capacity). It felt like a bell curve; our strength decreased as we gained outdoor climbing skills. While most people climb too much on climbing trips, we struggled with not climbing enough since we split up our days and shared time under different projects. I will dive deeper into this subject in a separate post. Still, during our final month in Switzerland, we considered various options. Zane also injured a pulley in mid-September, which impacted this decision. The uncertainty of these decisions felt draining, but there were many factors to consider. Ultimately, I started looking at nurse practitioner jobs, travel nursing jobs, and places to rent when we came home.

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We enjoyed the final three weeks in Switzerland immensely. We climbed a lot in Plex, a beautiful mountain bouldering crag, and Zane and I had projects on the same boulder. I was trying a 7b/+ called the "Real 6c," which was the end of Zane's project, "Eragon," a 7c+/8a. We put in many days on both climbs, and both fell on the last move (probably the crux) many times. Most of my best goes were in September when I felt more fit, but I did surprise myself by sticking the crux move on my last climbing day. Our last climbing day in Plex, October 23rd, was incredibly cloudy and humid, so we were even surprised to climb. We could climb with our hold-drying gadget, but I wet-fired on the last move after sticking the crux on my project. Zane's project was a mini-sport climb; he had days he climbed to the last move but did not send either.

We also enjoyed many climbing days in other areas in the Valais, Saleinaz and Pralong. A lot of information is on 27-crags, but generous locals provided information and pins about the local climbing that is otherwise not online. Zane was close on a climb at the Pralong boulder, called "Super FiFi." We went to this boulder on our last day before flying out, and Zane was so close to sending it, but he got a bleeding flapper and a blood blister and did not have enough gusto to send it. It was hard that neither of us sent our final projects of the trip, but it is extra motivation for training.

While in Switzerland, Zane cooked at home most days, but we enjoyed a pizzeria in Le Chable several times. On one of our days out, we climbed with locals Marie and Theo at their home wall and then ate out at a restaurant that served a local, seasonal dish, Chataîgnes, or roasted chestnuts, paired with fresh cheese, meats, and dessert.

It is funny because, after five months abroad, we expected to feel like a travel itch was "scratched." As we spend more and more time traveling, especially climbing, there is more we want to see and do in the future. Indeed, the list of climbs we want to do is even longer now. We also learned that for us, three to five week trips are ideal for climbing performance. Yet this trip was a life experience and a time in our lives we will always remember fondly.