Toboggon Run, La Vue des Alpes, Switzerland

Only the higher alps have snow all year round. What do you do when the weather is warm and the flowers are blooming and you want the some of the same thrills as in winter? You put your toboggans on wheels, and the wheels in a downhill metal run with twists and turns.

A cable pulls the toboggan up the hill. From there it is all gravity.

Channel Up and Channel Down
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Toboggan Run, La Vue des Alpes, Neuchâtel.Enlarge

The toboggans can pick up a lot of seed on the descent.

Nearing the end of the 700 meter ride.

Toboggan Run in the Jura Mountains, La Vue des Alpes, Neuchâtel.Enlarge

Starting and Ending Point for Toboggan Run, La Vue des Alpes, Neuchâtel.Enlarge

Prices start around four francs for adults and three francs for kids. You can buy up to twenty runs down the hills for discounted prices. Also, discounted prices are available for groups. To find out more you can call 032 761 08 00. Be ready to use your French.

Excuse my bringing in a potted tree. I thought the construction of the 'pot' was interesting.The pot is made from rebar and rocks. Hoops of rebar, the metal rod used to reinforce concrete in buildings, sidewalks and roads, are held together by vertical arcs of rebar. The rebar is bent at the vertical ends to help secure the construction. Along the inside of the rebar frame walls are placed rocks. A layer of heavy plastic covers the interior rock walls. Soil is dumped into the cavity and the tree planted in the middle. Ingenious. I wish I would have thought of it.

For more tree pot photos

Potted Tree, Toboggan Run
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