Mid-September’s Butterfield & Robinson bike tour in Switzerland was the last segment of a fabulous jam-packed 7 weeks in Europe. I flew into Lausanne on the banks of Lake Geneva on the eve of our bike trip and explored the city. Lausanne is in the French-speaking region of Vaud, Switzerland. It’s home to the International Olympic Committee headquarters, as well as the Olympic Museum.

My good friends, Tom & Jennie, looked pretty psyched to get on their bikes. This was an E-Bike tour so our guides had a lot of adjustments to make.

It is Switzerland so you can expect any type of weather, especially in September. The rain began!

Our B & R guide, Federico, takes a group shot of some cold and wet riders.

We rode up to a winery overlooking the lake for lunch.

“Should we wait for the others to catch up?” Well,…its not really rude to munch a little on bread and drink some wine!

We happily checked into the Hotel Trois Couronnes after a day of riding.

Federico poured some wine before dinner and went over the next days of riding.

As a huge Fan of Freddie Mercury and Queen I had to strike a pose near the statue in his name. As well as living in Montreux, Freddie also recorded six albums there with Queen, including “Made in Heaven”.

Tom takes a photo of the beautiful Chateau de Chillon. Click on the link for a castle tour: https://youtu.be/EL4YYc87uOQ?si=MLhFW7cP-CZ-I7pJ

It was chilly but at least the sun was shining!

We took an historic lake boat back to Vevey.

Walking back to the hotel from the boat dock I came across this gigantic poster.

Dinner at Ze Fork in Vevey with our group.

This was the beginning of the climb as we rode up to the medieval village of Gruyeres. It is of course famous for its’ cheese.

Gruyer is a beautiful and historic town nestled below the giant Swiss Alps.

I felt strong on this day of climbing up the hills to an inn above Chateau-d’Oex. They rewarded me with a wonderful beer!

After checking into the fabulous Hotel Grand Bellevue in Gstaad we were shuttled up the hill to a cheese factory. Some locals gave us a traditional Alphorn concert.

Tom gave it a go and wasn’t bad at all. One brave dude!

The hills above the village of Gstaad are beautiful. The cows are so pampered they must feel like they are in heaven!

We went to the cheese cellar to learn about the aging process and have a taste. It was delicious!

This was a really tough day of climbing! We were on E-Bikes but it is still steep! I asked the lead guide for our group if I could ride ahead and he said “go for it”!

I wore 6 top layers in the freezing weather…yes, 6 layers! I really didn’t pack the right gear! We rode past ancient wooden buildings in Gsteig. It was like a postcard, but you could tell the weather was changing.

This is a gorgeous part of Switzerland.

We stopped at “Glacier 3000” gondola station.

We took the gondola to 9,840′ for a look at the Tsanfleuron Glacier which is melting at an alarming rate.

It was very cold and icy as we climbed the stairs to the “lower peak”.

There is only one suspension bridge in the world that links two mountain peaks: the “Peak Walk by Tissot”. Located at Glacier 3000, it invites you to experience an adventure you’ll never forget! The bridge, which is 351’long and 2′ 8″ wide, offers a breathtaking view of the Alps: the Matterhorn, Mont Blanc, Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau are the best-known visible peaks on clear days. The photo below shows what our weather really looked like.

“Brrrr”! Tom and I looking rather…frigid! I think you can see “acrophobia” written all over me!

Swiss engineering or not…I’m really not a big fan of heights!

It was sleeting as we rode down the mountain toward Gstaad. Jennie, Tom, and I stopped to look at some beautiful cows. These guys are super pampered!

Our hotel for the next 2 nights was the magnificent Le Grand Bellevue Hotel in Gstaad. Click on the hotel’s photo gallery link.

Tom suggested something a little different for lunch. We strolled through the gardens of Le Grand Bellevue to a tiny mountain log cabin restaurant, Le Petit Chalet. This intimate restaurant seats just 18 people and specializes in traditional Swiss cuisine such as truffle fondue, goat cheese fondue, and raclette. It was great fun!

Our last night group dinner in Gstaad was fun. I met a new friend at the hotel! One of our fellow riders from Dubai kindly paid for everyones dinner along with fine wines!

The last day was in Bern, the capital of Switzerland. This is the view of the town and the Aare River from my room at the Hotel Bellevue Palace.

A guide took us up in the medieval clocktower to explain the historic workings.

This bike tour opened my eyes to many new aspects of the beauty of Switzerland. The weather wasn’t great, but it was really fun traveling with Tom and Jennie! And, Butterfield & Robinson are the very best in the bike tour business!

Photos: Dick Gentry! Not to be used without permission.