Pasang Sherpa Shares Photos from His Trip to Switzerland and the French Alps
I always enjoy seeing photos from others taken during their vacations, especially when they travel to interesting places.
Not long ago, a member of my outdoor grounds crew, Pasang Sherpa, traveled with his family for one week to Europe - London, France, and Switzerland. Pasang, who has many friends in the French Alps region, used to go there every year, but this was his family's first trip. They visited the Jardin Anglais in Geneva, hiked around Chamonix-Mont-Blanc and Sixt-Fer-á-Cheval in France, visited the famous Rouget waterfall, and walked deep into the Grotte de Grace ice cavern.
Here are a few of his photos, enjoy.
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- Pasang and his family flew at night from New York’s JFK International Airport to London. This is a night view from their plane.
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- Many of you may recognize Pasang from this blog. He is our resident tree expert here at my farm. Here he is in London at the beginning of his trip.
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- One of their big stops was in Geneva, Switzerland. Here, on the western most tip of Lake Geneva, or Lac Léman, Pasang quickly took a photo of these swans. Lake Geneva is the largest lake in central Europe, straddling the border between Switzerland and France.
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- This is the famous flower clock at the Jardin Anglais. Planted in 1955, it is the biggest clock in the world made exclusively from flowers. It was built at the park’s centennial to pay homage to Switzerland, watchmaking and horticulture. The Jardin Anglais is also home to several hundred-year-old trees, such as a ginkgo planted in 1863 and a red beech planted in 1895 for the National Exhibition.
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- Here’s a photo of Pasang’s daughter, Sonam, and his wife, Ihemi at Jardin Anglais.
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- The family also visited Chamonix-Mont-Blanc – a resort area near the junction of France, Switzerland and Italy. Les Praz is a charming picturesque village just outside the center of Chamonix. From this vantage point, one can see the beautiful snow-capped mountains in the distance.
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- Another highlight was a visit to the Grotte de Glace ice cave in Chamonix – more than 500 steps down. The Grotte de Glace cave is carved into a glacier…
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- … And all done by man to form the one and only glacier museum in France. This cave meanders through the Mer de Glace glacier and has many rooms and tunnels.
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- The cave is reshaped every year and has been for the past half-century, in order to provide safety and interest for visitors.
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- Not far is the Cascade du Rouget – a gorgeous waterfall in Haute-Savoie, in the Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval area. Also known as the “Reine des Alpes” or Queen of the Alps, this waterfall has two drops and it’s more than 296 feet.
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- Surrounding the waterfall are these gorgeous views. The area is just filled with flora and fauna.
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- Among the highest mountains in the area is Mont Buet, also called “Women’s Mont Blanc” which reaches 10,167 feet.
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- Sixt-Fer-a-Cheval has miles and miles of trails and paths among alpine meadows, forests, and waterfalls.
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- At the end of their hike, Pasang and his family enjoyed fresh omelettes made right on the hillside.
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- Followed by a short nap.
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- And then it was time to hike back to the base. Pasang and his family enjoy hiking. In fact, Sherpas live in the most mountainous areas of Nepal, high in the Himalayas. They are renowned in the international climbing and mountaineering community for their hardiness, expertise, and experience at very high altitudes.
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- Along the way, the group saw a large herd of sheep grazing.
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- This photo includes Pasang’s son Tash, Sonam, and Pasang’s brother Dawa, who is a three-time Winter Olympics cross-country skier.
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- The area around the village of Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval belongs to Sixt-Passy, one of the most beautiful nature reserves of the Haute Savoie. There are glaciers, high cliffs, waterfalls, alpine meadows, streams, and rivers. Here are Tash and Sonam by one of the ice formations.
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- And here is Ihemi in one of the camping “cabins” available to hikers. This one is just big enough to sleep in after a long day’s trek.
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- When closed, it is safe from inclement weather and curious animals. Although the family did not stay on the mountain, they did enjoy a short rest before heading back to the village. Pasang’s wife and children are already thinking about their next trip abroad. Thanks for sharing your photos, Pasang!
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