What is that stuff falling from the sky??

After to days of lazing around the house, doing nothing much but studying up on some German, I decided I need to get out and do something. That something was a hike up to the highest village in the surrounding mountains: St-Cergue. I'm not quite sure how far it is, or actually how to get there, I just knew I had to head up through the forest, so that's where I headed. It was also supposed to rain r snow today and I wanted to ensure that I was high enough for it to be snowing on me, rather than raining on me!!

It was a windy and rather frigid morning when I set off. The wind was whipping through the trees so much so that I was stopped by an elderly couple who were walking their dog. They were worried about me hiking in such weather warned me to watch out for falling trees! Something I'm rather grateful for as that hadn't even occurred to me. Swiss trees don't fall down, that just wouldn't sit well with Swiss order. I'd always imagined Swiss trees to rather gently place themselves on the ground when they were too tired to stand anymore. It seems only right. Fortunately I did not encounter any trees that were inclined to rip themselves from the ground onto my path. The wind, however, did make for beautiful autumn scenery as it gave any indecisive leaf the motivation to fall.

All around me was a rosy array of colour highlighting the path ahead of me. As I mentioned I was not quite sure exactly how to get to St Cergue, I just knew its general direction was up. So up I headed, come path or no path... If anyone ever tries to convince you that it is a better option to walk directly up a hill, instead of taking the path, do not listen to those crazy ramblings! There is no truth in it being easier to go straight up. That is why there are very few paths that go straight up a mountain. Take the long way round! 

Although the hike was long, and continuously uphill it was one of the most delightful hikes I've done. This is partly due to the beautiful autumn colours that surrounded me, but mostly to do with the "weird things falling from the sky". I kept noticing, out the corner of my eye, small little things that I initially thought were seeds falling from the trees. When my brain caught up and thought wait a minute, there no seeds falling from trees in autumn... I took a closer look at what turned out to be SNOWFLAKES!!!! I had left the rain behind and was now wandering though the forest, higher and higher, following the snowflakes as they got bigger and fluffier. What does it matter if you don't know where you are going when you are surrounded by the first white fluffy snowflakes of winter!