Whenever we talked about marathon training, my good mate Colin always used to say “It’s all about time on your feet”. So, as part of my build up for the Sierre-Zinal race (which isn’t strictly a marathon distance, at 31km, but it’s as good as, if not more, when you consider the 2,200m of ascent), I’ve decided to complement my runs with a series of long walks. (That is until the snow disappears off the mountain tops and then I can start doing some big ascents).
So, on Thursday, I set off to do a walk from Sion to the small village of Corin-de-la-Crête along the Chemin du Vignoble (which is Swiss walking route no. 36). The distance between the two is around 14km or 8.5 miles, making it a 28km or 17 miles round trip. I expected it to take around 3 hours to get there and 6 hours altogether. However, after 3 hours, I was still only in the village of Ollon, about 3km or 2 miles short of my target. Something had slowed me down… See the numerous pictures in the gallery below (and this was just the tip of the iceberg!)
But I was happy that I’d gone ‘out’ for long enough and that it would still be 6 hours ‘on my feet’, so I set off back again. As you will also see below, the weather started and finished relatively brightly but in between it was quite dull – as well as quite cool and breezy, so there were not many butterflies to slow me down even more! For some reason (must be something to do with walking on your own) I seemed to get a bit of a fixation with the wide variety of steps leading up or down to the vineyards. (See pics 24-26 for some examples, which were again only a few of the ones photographed).
Alittlebitoutoffocus 
Lovely!
Marathon? Marathon… :::ponders::: The only marathon that’ll ever happen around here is of the ilk I did the other day, when I did a marathon of binge watching Netflix with “The Queen’s Gambit.” Otherwise, that word is just crazy talk. ♥
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Thanks M. Yes, it is a long way and it’s not for everyone that’s for sure. But, it’s a challenge and gives me a focus for my ‘training’. (Not that it’s anywhere near as intensive as ‘a few’ years ago!) 😊
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14 km in 3 hours…. it’s possible but I know myself…. always taking pictures (most of the time macro shots)… that takes time. For a walk like this, I must leave my camera at home !
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Yes, I did consider going without my camera, but you just never know when you might see something ‘special’. And, old habits die hard, so once I started snapping, I couldn’t stop! Maybe next time… 🤔
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With all those amazing views, it’s a wonder you made it home before nightfall 🙂 I agree that time on the feet is a necessary part of marathon training, and this looks like a lovely way to do it!
I hope to catch up more with your other adventures soon. 🙂 But great to see some things haven’t changed too much!
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Thanks Dorothea. Nice to hear from you. I hope all is well. Yes, things are still as beautiful here as they were before… 😊
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that is wonderful to read!! Yes, here in Florida things are mostly okay. Could do with a change of governor, and a change of weather patterns, but I’ve had some chances to see the FL flora and fauna, so that has been nice!
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I dare say the weather is somewhat warmer over there than in central Europe (which is quite poor at the moment)! All is well here otherwise thank you. Jude and I get our second vaccines on Thursday, so hopefully, that will allow us to do more things around Europe (where there’s talk of a vaccine passport) and some countries are starting to open up a bit more. 🤞🤞
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yes!! I am aware. The vaccines will hopefully help things start to feel more like normal. It seems Austria has already taken a step in that direction… Switzerland may likely soon follow. I’m curious to know how things will progress in the UK, though. They were doing really well for a while! Hopefully that continues to be the case.
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I’ve just read the Austrian requirments and they do sound sensible (to me anyway). Let’s hope the whole of Europe (inc. UK) adopts a similar policy. 🤞🤞
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I can totally understand your distractions along the way, slowing your trek down. 😉 Fabulous shots, Mike! Especially love photos 23-26!!
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Thank you Donna. I had another 5 ‘step’ photos, including Overgrown/blocked steps, Lizard step(s) and Waymarker steps… It became almost a challenge to find another type! 😊
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It’s beautiful with the channels, Mike. It’s almost like a lavada hike 😊
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Yes the Bisses are very similar to levadas, if not the same. They were (possibly still are in some places) used to irrigate the crops – e.g. the vineyards or the orchards, etc. There are several around the Valais on both sides of the valley. They make for easy walking, once you get to the end of them of course. Some have quite interesting ‘drops’ to the side. 😊 More info can be found here: https://www.valais.ch/en/home
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Wouw! Tempting link. Awesome views!!!
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Yes, I’ve done a few over the years. (You maybe missed them). Just put the word Bisse into the Search box on my About page and there are oodles to look through. This being the most recent: https://alittlebitoutoffocus.com/2021/04/18/bisse-de-sion-and-bisse-dayent-walk-valais-switzerland/ 😊
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I didn’t miss the one you are linking to, Mike. But I think Jude would like you to have missed it 😊
It looks different to the header – is it from the same area?
I’ve always dreamt to walk in a place like the one in your header 😀 – or just to have a coffee break!
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Hi Hanna. Yes, it was an ‘interesting’ walk! If you look at the Route map of the Bisse de Sion and Ayent walk, you can see St Leonard and Ollon towards the bottom of the map. They are quite close to each other but one starts much higher – like at 1300m instead of ‘just’ 600m. If it weren’t for the travel restrictions, you should arrange to come to Switzerland to fulfill your dream(s). 😊
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