When I got back to the car park after my walk up Bella Lui, I thought I’d have a quick look at the Bisse du Ro. I wasn’t planning on doing the whole route, of 5 km (3 miles) there and 5 km (3 miles) back, but there was a sign at the start saying it was closed in 2 km (1.25 miles), so I thought I’d do what I could.
This of course meant that if I had been able to continue on my intended route over Bella Lui and down the path from the Col de l’Arpochey, I would have been stuck on the other side of whatever blockage there was. So it was a good job I did turn around when I did. 😊
As you will see, it’s not a route recommended for anyone with vertigo!
Alittlebitoutoffocus 
Well that must have been an interesting job constructing that channel and indeed the modern walkway….think I’ll give it a miss.
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Most of it is perfectly safe, though there was a section, where the path was only 4 feet wide and the drop off to the left was pretty steep. (And I mean fall to your death steep). It would never be allowed in the UK, due to ‘elf and safety!
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P.S. I also meant to make a little joke about the flag on pic 10 being the new Union Jack after Scotland leave…
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Strewth….some of those walkways look as if they’re just dangling off of the rockface. So spectacular though! I must do some walking in Switzerland one of these days…
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Well, yes, they are attached to the rockface – but hopefully fixed with typical Swiss precision! And, yes, you should visit Switzerland. You would love the abundance of flowers in late June/July. There are superb walks all over the country. Check out this website and expand the Hiking option on the left (with the +) and then select Regional or National routes or, zoom into an area and select local. (I guess it’s the equivalent of the Ordnance Survey maps). https://map.schweizmobil.ch/?lang=en&photos=yes&bgLayer=pk&logo=yes&season=summer&resolution=250&E=2631750&N=1189000
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Wow. Amazing views. But not a walk for even vaguely vertigo-suffering ramblers. Like me. The people who built those walkways must’ve been made of pretty stern stuff.
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I was amazed to read (see pic 10) that they counter-weighted the plank with stones as they moved it along cutting the holes. I think they must have also been crazy!
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That path had never turned into anything if I had to stand for the work 😉😊
Fabulous work!!
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Yes, it’s amazing engineering (certainly for the time they were built). The bisses only drop maybe 50 to 100 metres over several kilometres.
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Oh how dedicated the Swiss have been to their mountain walks. I love these photos, Mike, demonstrating the engineering of these paths, and the ingenuity. I can never fathom how these are built, so I espec. enjoyed reading the explanation. A plank pushed out in open space, loaded with stones to counter-balance. yikes. and yikes again! Terrific post.
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Thank you Jet. It must have been a precarious business. (Just like some of those guys who built the New York skyscrapers that you see sitting having lunch on a girder!) At the end of the day, they obviously thought it necessary in order to water the crops to keep people fed (and wined, if you consider the vineyards as well!) 😊
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Around here everyone pats themselves on the back for some basic conversion of an old railroad track into a walking path. Holy cats… plus, if you ever need a photo example of the word “trust” you have a few now.
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There are 28 bisses around the Rhone valley (at least in our canton of the Valais) but not all have those death-defying walkways. I must have walked about 8, maybe even 10, of them now and I’d say 4 or 5 have some sections like that. I certainly trust the Swiss engineers, but the biggest danger is from rockfalls from above. I think that’s why the route must have been closed. That was certainly the case with the Bisse de Lens in February (see pic 21): https://alittlebitoutoffocus.com/2020/02/25/grande-bisse-de-lens-walk-valais-switzerland/ I would have continued on this route, to find out why it was blocked, but for 2 guys sitting at a bench near the closed sign. I will no doubt return next summer to complete the walk that I intended to do. 😊
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This post was such an awesome discovery! The engineering behind the walkways, just amazing! This hike is not for everyone. Only the fearless! Thank you so much for sharing Mike!
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I’m sure some parents must take their children along there, though I bet they hang on tight along some sections! 😱
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My goodness, I can’t imagine! But I’m sure you’re right! 😳
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Intimidating and intriguing paths, wow!!
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Definitely unusual! 😊
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