How good is your knot tying? asks Michi Theiler, my local guide. I'd understand his question if we were sailing around the Balearics, but now, during a four-day mountain bike romp between towering Swiss peaks, I'm baffled.
But then I see the cable car we're about to board and all makes sense - I only wish I'd put more effort into getting my Cub Scouts knots badge. In front of us, gently (if a little precariously) swaying in its docking station, sits a tiny cabin suspended from a cable that soars impossibly upwards to disappear into thick forest. At a squeeze this aluminium bubble might fit four people, as long as any luggage - bikes included - is entrusted to its exterior rack. I look at the basic metal cage fixed to the outside, and the frayed bit of rope dangling limply above it - the only things that'll keep my pride and joy in place for the uplift ahead - and breathe deeply. It's the kind of needs-must contraption I'd expect to see in Nepal. It's not very Swiss, I laugh to Michi, only half joking.
Knots landing
This story is from the April 2022 edition of Mountain Biking UK.
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This story is from the April 2022 edition of Mountain Biking UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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