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We decided to do an easy hike today and just enjoy the beauty of the area.

We boarded a gondola and headed to Furi. The many old buildings are

authentic Walser mountain houses, barns and stores.

After exploring Furi we tested Judith's fear of heights on the Furi suspension Bridge.

We then explored the cute hamlets of Zum See and Blatten before hiking back to Zermatt.

ABOVE LEFT - In line for the first gondola of the day. Almost everyone was headed up to the glacier for skiing

ABOVE MIDDLE - Starting in Furi, the trail first leads through the hamlet

and then up to the pioneer landscape with larch trees.

ABOVE RIGHT -The adventure begins in the hamlet of Furi, where you find yourself at an altitude

of 1867 metres and immersed in a world characterized by the traces of the Gorner Glacier.

ABOVE LEFT - The hamlet of Furi is at the precise location where the Gorner Glacier once covered

the ground in a thick layer of ice. Today, the landscape is characterized

by meadows, larch forests and smooth rocks.

ABOVE MIDDLE - A wooden walkway leads over a small stream. The path then continues through

bushes, a small patch of moorland and a landscape of rocks, rubble and scree.

This is a nature walk (naturweg) and there are informative signs along the way.

ABOVE RIGHT - On the Furi Suspension Bridge. The footbridge suspended over the Gorner Gorge

is 100 meters long and 90 meters high. Anyone brave enough to pause on it and risk a glance

down into the roaring ravine will get a clear sense of the raw power of nature for a few moments.

ABOVE LEFT - Judith testing her fears on the Furi Suspension Bridge.

ABOVE MIDDLE - Judith is somewhere out on that bridge!

ABOVE RIGHT - Bluebells

ABOVE LEFT -Mountain Hyacinth. Most of the meadows throughout

today's hike were filled with hyacinths and bluebells.

ABOVE MIDDLE - Who?! We saw a lot of wooden sculptures along the trail.

ABOVE RIGHT - Restaurant in Furi. What a beautiful setting.

ABOVE LEFT - Beautiful scenery the entire hike.

ABOVE MIDDLE - Now headed down to Zum See (At the lake). In earlier centuries, a mule

trail led through the hamlet of Zum See, linking Switzerland and Italy via the Theodul Pass.

The closely grouped buildings are authentic and represent hundreds of years of history.

ABOVE RIGHT - Entrance to the hamlet of Zum See. The old buildings date back to as early as 16th century.

ABOVE LEFT - Open for business - we sampled the homemade ice cream! This restaurant gets rave reviews but unfortunately, it was too early for our lunch.

ABOVE MIDDLE - Getting ready for the lunch crowd.

ABOVE RIGHT - Enjoying a rest stop in Zum See.

ABOVE LEFT - Flowers everywhere.

ABOVE MIDDLE - The restaurant "Zum See" is located in the beautiful hamlet of the same name

above Zermatt. They will pamper you in the dining room or on the sun terrace

of the 350-year-old chalet in a homely atmosphere - with a view of

the Matterhorn and the wonderful mountains of Zermatt.

ABOVE RIGHT - Just love these old houses on stilts. The buildings are made of larch,

the tree that dominates this area. Rich in resin, the timber is particularly resistant to pests.

Most were built between the 16th-18th centuries. The buildings sit on flat stone slabs

balanced on stilts to keep out mice. They are roofed with heavy slabs of rock,

which compress the timber supporting it, making the construction more robust.

Sunshine and weather darkens the wood, then the building

becomes more effective at absorbing and storing heat.

ABOVE LEFT - Below Zum See on the way to Blatten.

ABOVE MIDDLE - A stop to taste the fresh water.

ABOVE RIGHT - Mattervispa River which rises from the Gorner Glacier and the Zmutt Glacier.

ABOVE LEFT - Leaving Blatten after lunch.

ABOVE MIDDLE - Fred had to try the flying rings. There was a par course along this section of the hike.

ABOVE RIGHT - Through the Larch trees.

ABOVE LEFT - Field of Mountain Hyacinths.

ABOVE MIDDLE - Trail runners were passing us constantly on the trail. They were part

of the Ultra Tour Monte Rosa, a 4 stage race with 200 starters who cover a total of 171km,

with ascent and descent of 11,600m. Stage 2 began in Zermatt this morning

ABOVE RIGHT - One of the many carvings we saw along the trail.

ABOVE - Love this old Indian bike