THE FURKA PASS - Chris and Lene on Tour

The Furka Pass road is where part of the 007 movie Goldfinger was shot, with Sean Connery squeezing his Aston Martin in the many hairpin curves.
One of our sightseeing stops were by the Rhône Glacier. This is probably the easiest way to get close to a glacier – and not only close, very close, in fact directly INTO the glacier!!! Every year, since 1870, a new 100 meter long tunnel is cut in the glacier. A group of men works some weeks in May on finishing the tunnel for visitors. By this time the Furka Pass is still closed, so they have to arrive by helicopter! Normally the tunnel is open for visitors from June to October. It is really a surreal experience, however not as cold as you may expect, entering the tunnel. The ice is beautifully blue, well ice-blue 🙂. Water drops from the top while the ice melts, especially on hot days during summer. This also reminds us how glaciers all over are shrinking, some many meters every year. A bit scary. After the visit, we had plenty of options of getting a souvenir and perhaps an ice-cold 😉 beer or a coffee before moving on. Looking down in the valley, where the river Rhône flows from the glacier, there is often a chance to see marmots or even an alpine ibex.