My Stories

runventure

Tour de l’Argentine

One of my questions for Merlin while coordinating my WorkAway plans in Gryon, Switzerland was “how’s the hiking + trail running in the area?”, turns out Merlin was not lying when he said the options are endless. From the day I arrived the Tour de l’Argentine has been mentioned by multiple people, yet it still took me about 4 weeks to actually get out there and run/hike the loop. It did not disappoint! And I really should have done it earlier because now I really want to summit l’Argentine but I’m running out of time!
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
runventure

Peaks + Valleys

What do you do when the clouds take over the mountain? The same thing you do when it’s a beautifully sunny day — you get your tush outside and find trails to explore! I’ve done a fairly good job of winning the fight against the snot factory that took over my sinuses but the weather has not been very good at supporting my quest to spend all my free time outside. Rather than greeting me with sunny skies and tshirt temperatures it’s been doling out lots of chilly clouds. But I am nothing if not persistent…clouds or not, outside I went!
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
travel thoughts

Take It Easy

Every time the seasons change I get sick, without fail. Sometimes I blame it on airplane cooties [like that time I nearly died from a ferocious head cold + sketchy stomach flu the week I got home from South America] but really, I think my immune system is just a big wimp that sucks at fighting off the bad guys. And I don’t care how old I am, I will always imagine white blood cells shooting sticks at these nasty germs like they do on the Magic School Bus >> https://youtu.be/uJKJr7gKS_Y [and, yes, I watched that entire episode after I found it!].
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
travel thoughts

Stories of a Hut Guardian

I think I have snagged my last two SAC hut stays of the season…snow has arrived and I am not prepared for legitimate winter mountaineering in the Swiss Alps. Sure, I’m a little bummed I won’t be huttin’ it anymore but I randomly picked some pretty amazing huts for my last trip! And I really do mean randomly, I have no idea where my Google search started but it ended with me reserving beds at Frundenhutte and Bluemlisalphutte…two of the only huts who still had guardians in October.
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
runventure

Alone in the Mountains [Schonbielhutte]

There were only a few hours between my “I should go somewhere” thoughts and my “hop on a train” actions but I did do a little Google’ing to get a feel for the trails in the Zermatt area. The Schonbielhutte was on my radar but the hut’s website was very vague about when it closed for the season. I checked with the Zermatt Tourism Office but the woman simply read me the website…super helpful. Or not.

So, when I came upon the sign that said “Schonbielhutte 1h 25m” I decided to check out the hut for myself. Worst case scenario, the hut would be closed and I would be hiking along remote mountain trails next to the Matterhorn on an absolutely gorgeous day for another three hours. Best case scenario, the hut would be open and I’d get to spend another night in the mountains.
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
friends + feelings

Real Talk: People Make the World Go Round

Welp, I’m officially a year old than I was on this date 365 days ago! More notably, I am 29 years older than I was 10,585 days ago. Probably. In all my time on this earth I have never been that great at math. What I’m trying to say…in a lot if words, something I’ve always been good at…is that today is my birthday.

I toyed with the idea of going in a grand adventure but instead I watched Ice Age while eating breakfast in bed, took the long trail to the grocery store, snagged a train ride home and retreated back to my bed with all the snacks. Why? Definitely not because there aren’t any adventures to be had, I have quite a to-do list waiting for me.
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
runventure

Escaping Zermatt

Zermatt is a tourist city, there is no denying that. The moment you step off the train you feel the “tourist vibe” humming around you. The people behind the desk at the tourism office have a rehearsed spiel, the streets are teaming with selfie sticks and each little shop has its own carousel of beautiful postcards.

Personally, I am not a fan of the “tourist vibe”, as hypocritical as that may be. The cities that have grown to accommodate tourists always feel stifling + staged…but they grew for a reason. The mountain trails + wilderness surrounding these kitschy tourist cities are stunning. And the true perk of these overgrown cities? Most tourists stay in the cities, or at least close to them, leaving the more remote + challenging trails empty for people like me!
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
friends + feelings

Currently.

A lot has changed over the past two months, but at the same time life feels very normal. Weirdly normal. I’m living in Switzerland, working for a couple I’ve only known for a few weeks, living in a hostel with a revolving door of strangers and grocery shopping with Google Translator in hand.
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
trails + tents

Sunshine + Rain: Cabana de Plan Neve

It turns out the Swiss Alps really are littered with Swiss Alpine Club huts and their privately owned lookalikes. At Chalet Martin I met Caroline, another WorkAway from the States, and after a few days of extra fridge cleaning and bed making we ran away from civilization for a night in a mountain hut. At Merlin’s suggestion we headed toward Cabana de Plan Neve, a smaller hut nestled in a mountain valley.

When we left the hostel the low hanging clouds were threatening rain but as the day progressed the sun broke through the clouds and we ditched our rain gear for tank tops as we trekked down into Les Gorges, through Les Plans and up toward Pont de Nant.
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By Heidi Kumm, ago
travel thoughts

Chalet Martin: My New Home

About two weeks ago I lugged my over-sized duffle bag up a gravel trail to Chalet Martin, the hostel that would become my home for the next three weeks…or two months. I wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into. I had “met” the owners via WorkAway and we’d both agreed to commit to at least three weeks of a volunteer exchange — I helped out around the hostel [changing beds, basic housekeeping, etc] in exchange for a place to stay. As I walked in the hostel reminded me of the farm house I grew up in — a mud room for shoes + gear and cement stairs that led up to the creaky wood floors of the main level. I was home.
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By Heidi Kumm, ago