I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that Switzerland is criss-crossed by a huge network of numbered walking and cycling routes. Regional route no. 72 is a two stage cycle ride from Martigny to Leuk of around 82km (51 miles) and 1750m (5,740ft) of ascent. I dare say some people might be able to do that in a day but, Why rush? I say, especially when the vast majority of the route is clear of traffic and the views are, well, like below…

So it was that I decided to do just a short section of it above Sion, linking it up with the National Route 1 along the Rhone to make a somewhat less arduous and circular route of only 38.3 km (24 miles) and 830m (2,720ft) of ascent. A little bit of it overlapped with Route 140, so some of these images may look similar to my post of 2 weeks ago, but I’ve tried to find some different views, particularly of the individual snow-capped mountains (see pics 12-17).

I was also very pleased to see and to capture one of the many Queen of Spain Fritillaries, which seem to be fluttering around some of the vineyards. However, I’m afraid I cannot identify the two pink flowers in pics 7 & 8, which were also growing in between the rows of vines. So, if anyone has any suggestions, please feel free to comment.

For more information on the full 2 day Chemin du Vignoble route, please click here.

8 responses

  1. picpholio Avatar

    Beautiful pictures and great landscapes. Thanks for sharing, I enjoyed looking at this series.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alittlebitoutoffocus Avatar

      Many thanks for your comment. I’m really glad that you enjoyed the photos. 😊

      Like

  2. Hanna Avatar

    What a great place to go for a bike ride, Mike. An excellent way to enjoy the view πŸ˜πŸ™‚

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Alittlebitoutoffocus Avatar

      Yes, thanks Hanna. It looked so tempting on the map, I couldn’t resist. Though it was quite a climb. πŸ˜ŠπŸš΄β€β™€οΈ

      Like

      1. Hanna Avatar

        It’s just about finding the right gear 😁😁

        Liked by 1 person

        1. Alittlebitoutoffocus Avatar

          Yes, I was in the next to lowest gear for most of the climbs and the lowest for one short section. It felt like I was barely moving and could have walked faster!

          Like

        2. Hanna Avatar

          It sounds familiar, only it was not Switzerland. Read, not that steepπŸ™‚

          Liked by 1 person

  3. […] was walking last week). Not only that but Stage 5, on Saturday, starts in Sion and takes in some of the route I cycled a few weeks ago, then comes up the Val d’HΓ©rens, to St Martin, before dropping to the village of Praz Jean, […]

    Like

Leave a reply to Hanna Cancel reply