An Amazing Swiss Alps Adventure

The Go Ape tribe has got adventure in its soul. We love adventure and each year we take small teams of our Go Ape tribe away to take on new challenges - and what better challenge than a five-day trek through the Swiss Alps?

The 10-strong tribe, including Go Ape co-founder Tris Mayhew, was led by Jo McLaren from our Operations team. Armed with rucksacks, thick gloves and whole lot of enthusiasm, they piled into their hire cars and headed off from Geneva in search of some mountain adventures.

They didn’t have to wait too long for the first one. Just three hours into the drive a torrential downpour turned the hairpin bends on the road into rivers. Cars were being abandoned but the Go Ape team soldiered on to reach base camp. That’s the spirit!

After a first day of trekking up the stunning Gemini pass (with a quick pause for some ‘bum sliding’ – a new Go Ape adventure?) the team was rewarded by a breathtaking view, with the majestic Matterhorn in the distance. That was followed by a frantic 30-minute dash to catch the last cable car back down, but after some blood, sweat and tears everyone made it!

But this trip was about far more than sightseeing. Everyone wanted to challenge themselves - and climbing the towering Via Ferrata did just that. With varying levels of experience, some members saw the vastness of the imposing rock face and started to wonder just what they’d taken on. As with every Go Ape adventure, though, it’s all about staring fear in the face, feeling the adrenaline surging, climbing on and pushing through to the top.

With aching forearms (and one bloody nosebleed), our 10 fearless adventurers climbed for nearly four hours. They helped each other through all the physical and mental challenges, ascending over 350 metres. As Jo says, when they finally reached the top, “the expression on everyone’s faces said it all.” A sense of relief, closely followed by achievement, pride and sheer elation.

Once you’ve taken on a mountain, you may as well tackle a river, right? The following day saw the team at the mighty Lutschine, where they hurtled down continuous class III-IV rapids from the Eiger North Face all the way to the Lake of Brienz. Racing through the big white water was definitely a hold-on-tight moment! Luckily everyone managed to hang on and stay in the raft, to be rewarded by the tranquil turquoise water of the lake at the end.

To round off the adventure, the team headed for what they know best – a local ropes course. And even the toughest tribe members had to laugh at how exhausting the hard courses were! It all finished, as the best trips do, with swapping stories over a well-deserved beer or two.

We’re so proud of our team of 10, brilliantly led by Jo. They took on mountains, rivers and ropes, faced their fears and pushed through. At Go Ape we're all about encouraging people to live life more adventurously. Even though our Swiss Alps Tribe already have adventure coursing through their veins, it was fantastic to take them out of their daily comfort zone and see the amazing results at the end of their adventure. An epic trip all round!