Day 341 – EU – Switzerland [Villeneuve to Martigny]

11/03/21

38.5km

  From Villeneuve (Switzerland) to Martigny (Switzerland)

Europe

On the road again to the valley of the Rhone river in the Swiss Valais, a flat run surrounding by tall mountains

What a joy to be on the road again. I was wearing my new shoes, which my parents shipped to me (courtesy of Covid19 the sports shops were closed when I needed a new pair). It was the most comfortable my feet had been in a long time. I headed east out of Villeneuve and quickly joined the Rhone river path, which I followed for about half of the run. Around me were endless fields and cattle, on a narrow corridor with the Bernese Alps on my left and Pennine Alps on my right. Stunning.

I ran past the very impressive UCI world centre and its massive velodrome. It was completely deserted – I suspect at this time of year (in normal circumstances) you would expect to see loads of teams training there. I left the Rhone river halfway through the run to join the “cantonal road” which was fitted with a sidewalk all the way. A luxury really.

I stay today in Martigny, a city at a crossroad between Switzerland, Italy and France. Geographically very close to the Mont Blanc range, of which I expect to get a clear view tomorrow as well as the Matterhorn (it was a bit foggy around the summits today). The world famous resort of Chamonix is accessible by a 1h30 train from Martigny, a place where I have spent many holidays, summer and winter, as a youngster. I noticed the cherry trees are starting to blossom, Spring is really just around the corner. What a beautiful region.

Check my daily run GPS data on or

Here is the map of today’s run: