More like a rest day

We started today with a cable car ride up Chur’s ‘Hausberg’, the Brambrüesch.  Good views down to the valley from the lower cable car, and of the mountains all around from the upper one, though that was spoiled a bit by the badly scratched Perspex windows.  We took a short walk in the meadow at the top, admiring the wild flowers - and the tadpoles in the pond!  There are good hiking opportunities from the top station, but the serious hearty stuff was being done by mountain bikers.  The bikes go up inside the lower cable car, but hang on hooks outside the small 4-passenger gondolas of the upper one.  Some bikers headed off along the paved roads (it is possible to drive up to the high meadow) but others headed for the terrifying descent through the woods.

We contented ourselves with a spot of botanising, and with enjoying the mild fresh air.  Returning to the valley floor by cable cars again, we took a short walk to the station, pausing for coffee/orange juice before hopping on the train up to Arosa.  We went there some years ago in chilly damp weather, and had rather written it off.  Today was mostly cloudy but mild, so we walked a short way into town and back down along the lake front, opting for a restaurant overlooking said pond.  The town was not really geared up yet for the holiday season: we guess that its market is walking tourists in the summer, and skiers in winter, so our visit rather fell between the two.  Lunch was disappointing, so we’ll spare you the details, save to mention that the Pinot Noir (Blauburgunder hereabouts) from the lower, northern part of the Graubünden was fit to drink.

We then treated ourselves to a ride on the cable cars to the summit of the Weisshorn, which offers superb views all round.  That alone was worth the slow train ride up to Arosa.  Even though the weather was dull, the views convinced us that we should re-visit - again - on a better day.  But this is the time of year to do it, with residual snow defining the contours of the mountains, and wild flowers in profusion.  Unremarkable ride back down to Chur (ie, I dozed off quite a few times).

The Weisshorn summit is over 2500m up, so I was wondering how I’d cope, having previously felt a bit dizzy and breathless at anything approaching 2000m.  Martyn speculates whether this may be another benefit of the blood pressure pills.  I’ll ask the quack next time I see him.