Safe Return Doubtful

I stayed around Lugano for a couple of days more than I had originally planned, influenced by the fine weather, and knowing that on the other side of the Gotthard Tunnel was in most and cloud, and below zero.

As if to emphasise the fact, it was a clear morning, and when I took Roja out at just after 8 am, as the sun rose from above the mountain, the views were tremendous.

It was a three hour drive to Basel where we stopped to use the Intermarche and have lunch. I was here with work a few years ago, in 2019, doing some health and safety training for the PE and outdoor education teachers at the International School. The school itself lies just a couple of hundred metres from the borders of the three countries. But it was fly in late one night and out again late the next, so I hardly saw the place.

Just an hour further north was my destination, initially the small town of Châtenois in Alsace, which is on the Forts of Alsace hiking trail, and the Alsace Wine Route.

I really enjoy visiting the Vosges, but this time is likely to be a bit different. Snow is lying here at 200 metres asl, and the forecast is for quite a bit more over the next days, so I will confine myself to the villages around this altitude, which are new to me. Usually I’m higher up.

The wineries in these villages all offer free overnight parking for campervans, and often with electricity and other facilities. Though they are not running their tours, they are open, which is perfect for me. I will most likely be their only visitor in these wintery conditions.