Day 7 & 8 September 16 and 17, 2011

13 boys and 5 men...two days of flatulence and burping.  Our first hut trip!

There is no question that the men were full of flatulence.  Aren't we always?  Our 40+ year old bodies just don't seem to process the food like the kids these days.  While a bowl of pasta and red sauce may go down easy...especially after hiking for five hours and easily 5-6 miles to get to our high mountain hut...it's what the body does with that pasta and sauce that can be problematic later.  The picture above shows the kids eager to get moving...to get started on the adventure.  Not shown in this photo is four of the five men dealing with bowel/bladder related issues prior to leaving.  I was advised by my wife to take TP...just in case.  Mr. Justin Case showed himself the next day.  Thanks Kris.  

I like this kid...can you tell?

The first part of our journey to the hut was a relatively easy hike...it was actually one that I did and got lost on earlier in the week.  The day was warm, no breeze and no precipitation in the forecast for the next 24 hours.  The day was made perfect by the fact that I got to spend it with my son.  He is a leader...a talker...a supporter...a learner...a teammate.  He is getting everything from this program that we had hoped he would.  

The second part of our journey to the hut took a turn up...literally...about 25 feet beyond this photo.  Teasingly, the hut is perched high above the valley floor.  The is one way to get there....walk.

For some, this may be an optical illusion...this is not a flat road!

We had at least another mile or two of climbing...and about another 1,000 ft of elevation gain.  The adults in the group were all beginning warm up for their part in the Off Broadway classic, "Flatulence in my heart...flatulence in my pants".  (If you haven't seen yet...do so quickly.  People who don't get in are being sent to the "Book of Mormon" as a consolation prize).  The walk from this point took another couple of hours.  I'm not sure if continually seeing the hut made the walk harder or easier.  To me, it never seemed to get closer.  

The view from the trail...about half way to the hut.  

Most of the talking stopped during the last stretch of the hike.  Without question, this was a haul.  Good thing we had all the boys carry the food.  Speaking of food, dinner consisted of bread, pasta with red sauce and soup...all prepared by the owners of the hut.  By the way...the hut is closing its doors on Monday for the season and the owners are headed two places....to Octoberfest in Munich in October, then onto NYC in November.  They were excited to see the US and NY.  What great people they were...and what a nice 'hut' this was.  

Day Two's Goal...slightly right of the triangular peak just left of center...

What made day two so much fun was the fact that we spent the majority of time 'off' trail.  When you are hiking in a land that looks as if its a set in a Harry Potter movie...who needs trails?

One of the many streams we faced today that required strong leaping ability and a willingness to get wet

I don't think any of the kids got wet...but two of the adults did.  Yes, I would be one of those folks.  I put my foot on a wet rock not realizing that you could have ice skated on it.  Next thing I knew I am 15 meters down stream, slightly panicked because the hillside we were traversing was easily at a 75% angle.  For all I knew, I could have ended up in the Atlantic Ocean.  

Excuse me while I pose for a picture with my son....

The Flatulence-Free boys playing on the glacier....

At this point, we were really close to the summit of our day's climb.  Or at least I thought so.  False summits...they are a mean and cruel trick in the sport of cycling.  They can be equally painful and disconcerting in a long hike.  I may have begun to cuss about this time...nothing audible for the headmaster or kids to hear.  But just loud enough to convince myself that hiking was a BS sport for F%%$#& losers hell-bent on wasting their G@# D!@#$ money on equipment that may or may not make it through to the next season but surely smells after use one.  But I digress.  

The Summit...its all downhill from here...

The rest of the story is fairly nondescript.  The boys pointed their shoes down hill and almost made it to the gondola before the skies opened up with rain....almost.

I think Steve Earle said it best..."And the rain came down..."

I hope you all have a great weekend and great beginning to your work week.  Snow is supposed to make its arrival sometime this week in Zermatt followed by highs in the 50's.  Sounds a bit like the Springs.  We have trips scheduled for the next two weeks but Emme and I continue to make plans for some trips for just she and I...to Milan, to Saltzburg, to Prague.  I will let you know!  Thanks for reading.