Chalk: 6. Passo del Bernina

I had arrived at the railway station – the highest regular passenger train station in Switzerland. And it was totally deserted! The few icy footprints that were to be seen soon disappeared under deep drifts of snow. I quickly put on the rest of my winter gear. The temperature was literally not figuratively freezing cold. Without good gloves there was the potential for frost-bite. I had an emergency whistle, head-torch and mobile phone and made an epic attempt to climb up and out of the station.

I had walking poles to help me probe the snow for drifts of unknown depth. I was grateful that my good boots were able to cut steps in the icy crust. I was also grateful for my mountain walking gaters that stopped the snow from getting into my boots when struggling through thigh deep stretches of looser drifts. After about 10 minutes or so the battery failed on my phone because of the cold. Luckily I had made good choices when I bought my winter gear. Only my fingers were cold. My fingerless gloves with just a little flap to convert them to mittens were not up to the job.

I was breathing like a steam engine going up a steep hill carrying a heavy load. I would like to think it was the altitude (2,328 m or 7,638 ft), but it was largely down to my lack of fitness. Somewhat disconcerting was that because of the rise in ground I couldn’t see the direction of the hotel until the last few yards. I had reached about a two metre snow drift with a vertical face, created by the snow plough at the edge of the road. Fortunately a notch had been cut into it so a very inelegant roll and flop dropped me safely back down to solid ground.

I later read that when there is snow on the ground hotel guests arriving by train should get off at a station two stops back down the line and should have telephoned in advance for someone from the hotel to collect them by car. Where is the adventure in that?!

Hotel Bernina Hospiz was superb they had kept the feel of a traditional Swiss hostelry with a warm modern veneer to make it acceptable to a contemporary visitor. Walkers such as myself were welcome, and outside each bedroom was a very practical plastic tray on which to place one’s defrosting boots. The views from the hotel were stunning.

And then it was time to leave. The wind had dropped, the sun was shining and I gratefully accepted a lift to a station that was accessible by car! A truly memorable experience which I would happily repeat. Adversity makes it easier to appreciate things that we normally take for granted.

Oh yes. Until this mountain pass, everyone spoke Swiss German. The hotel was the language boundary and the staff’s first language was Italian. Despite the snow I was on my way south…

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