8/11/24
We felt like it was time to leave unlike our last rest day in Pfzorheim. Apart from Jonathan’s legs. The adventure into the mountains turned out to be moronic because the downhill had destroyed his muscles. It was painful to walk, though hopefully cycling would be easier.
The descent was exciting but hard on the hands as we were squeezing the brakes continuously. We got stuck behind a smelly diesel tractor that we were actually going faster than and had to wait a couple of times to avoid the fumes. As we waited for the air to return to being its usual crisp alpine self we spotted a Trump 2024 flag flying below us in Trimmis. Seriously. We’d seen some massive Dodge Ram trucks since arriving in Europe but apparently it was more than just their oversized SUVs people were importing.
Any descent we did was reluctant. We had discussed making it as far as Disentis today, then making the Lukmanier pass on Saturday. This would split the elevation about equally between two days. First we went to Chur. Frankie’s pedals appeared to be making an unusual noise and we decided to visit Decathlon and replace them.
Chur (pronounced Coo-er) is the oldest city in Switzerland and we thought it must be worth a little visit to the old town. It was quaint but not as scenic as Konstanz we found, but we didn’t spend long there so maybe we missed something. Heading out of the city we were travelling west and the elevation was calling for us.
The route, remember we are back on the EV15 at the moment, followed a river called the Vorderrhein. Loosely translated as front Rhein. The confluence with the Hinterrhein (back) was at Bonaduz. There was where the real climbing began. The river was deep in a stunning gorge and we climbed up an incredible set of hairpin bends into Versam.
Down below a red snaking train stood out in the valley. It must be an incredible journey to take. Apparently the railway in Graubünden, RHB as it is known, has a slightly narrower gauge than the rest of the country. The number of curves in the track demand it.
After the route into Obersays had been so deterring, we now felt much better about the idea of switchbacks. We stopped for lunch, leftover pizza, and as the Sun started dropping below a mountain we raced downwards towards Castrisch. That was always the best and worst thing about climbing, you went downwards afterwards. All your efforts were now spinning away from you.
It does mean that we made it quickly to the next towns. We now knew we would not be making it to Disentis today. There was still 500 odd metres of elevation to go. We’d have to stop earlier. As we left Castrisch towards Illanz we were on the south bank of the river, below the steep mountain. Where there was no Sun. It never reaches there. So it was suddenly unexpectedly extremely cold. Crispy white encrusted ground. Our breath was visible. We can’t say we didn’t panic a little bit, but we weren’t even that high up yet. Would the pass even be feasible?
As we continued we had to learn the now slightly different terrain. The presence of frost gave rise to the risk of ice. We stopped to wrap up. We passed a nice camping place, it even had a compost toilet and a fire pit. You aren’t supposed to camp in these places but they’re so welcoming. We’d have to stand around for 2 hours in the icy cold before we could even think about setting up our tent though. We’d probably need more rest than that if we were to have a hope of making it across the Alps.
There was an Italian restaurant in Rueun that doubled as a hotel. They wanted 100 Francs for a room online. We arrived at around 3pm after crossing a wooden covered bridge across the river and the train tracks then climbing a steep hill to the village. This place really didn’t get the Sun this time of year and presumably all winter. The hotel was extremely closed. As was the restaurant. They both said they opened at half 5.
But booking.com said you can check in from half 2! Not to be put off we called up the hotel number. A non-English speaking man answered and after some back and forth in both broken German and English we understood we should wait a moment. Then the line went dead. Three minutes later the phone rang with a Swiss number. It was the English speaking proprietor of the hotel. She asked us for 180 Francs for one night! We said we were looking to negotiate less than booking.com offered and we settled at 90 Francs instead. Success!
The keys were just in the letterbox next to us and we could then go straight up. Convenient. We resisted the urge to grab some clementines from the huge crate just sat outside the door and wheeled our bikes into the corridor. The room was spacious and surprisingly had a TV with BBC, ITV and C4.
The kettle didn’t work but soon the staff arrived and gave us some hot water. We needed it for the couscous. Now sans tofu as we hadn’t been able to get some lately. We still had cornflakes and only one of us ate them with water and some dried fruit. You can guess who that was. We rested, apprehensive about the cold that lingered outside.
Surly They Won't Make It 