Untourist Kemp Plugh first fell in love with Switzerland on a Swiss Untour. He has returned to Switzerland many times since, capturing the landscape with his keen eye and photography skills. In those years, he has also become a regular supporter of the UnTours Foundation, donating annually.
Here he shares some of his best landscape and scenery shots from his trip to the Oberland last year, and he elaborates on why he supports the UnTours Foundation.
This is the view of Tschentalp in Adelboden. And below is the iconic peak of the Matterhorn.
What I like about Switzerland is just about everything (except, perhaps, for the strong Swiss Franc): the scenery, the hiking, the public transportation (especially the trains, although I also enjoy the boats), and the friendliness of the people once you get to know them. All of my previous UnTours hosts were always friendly and helpful.
And of course the views. Here is Schloss Spiez with the Rothorn and the Niederhorn in the background.
The hiking trails are wonderful — well marked and usually going through very scenic areas. One can also choose one’s level of difficulty to match with one’s level of fitness or comfort, whether in the mountains or along the shores of a lake or river.
Here is a view of the clear blue Oeschinensee with the Blumisalp in the background. I took the photo from the Wanderweg that goes along the shore of the lake on its way to Unterbargli and Oberbargli. The photo above it shows the view from Spiezberg, above Spiez.
And here is the Oeschinesee from the hiking trail to Frundenhutte. Gorgeous reflections on a clear day.
The trains are usually not that crowded and most of the time run like clockwork (though I admit I typically go in the late spring/early summer or in the fall when there aren’t as many tourists around). Above is the 1412 Lotschberger, departing Kandersteg for Bern.
For me, the Swiss Travel Pass, although it has gotten more expensive over the years, is still a great bargain. With it, you can always take a 30-minute train ride to another city to have lunch or dinner. (I have grown quite fond of Kandersteg and think nothing of taking the train to either Brig or Spiez to grab a bite to eat).
It is always nice to pull into Kandersteg on the train at the end of a day of sightseeing. Here is an evening view of Haupstrasse. Below is a view of sunset on the Blumisalp.
As for my support of the UnTours Foundation, I feel that it is doing meaningful work and I know when Hal was doing things that there was very little (if any) overhead and that donations were going entirely to help those enterprises and people that could use the support. (This remains true.)
I continue to support the Foundation because I believe in the things that it supports and feel as though my donations are making a difference in people’s lives.