More Cow Bell

Hiking in Saleve

Aren't they just the cutest

We enjoyed hiking on Saleve, a mountain just across the Switzerland border. On one of our recent hikes we chose a trail leading to a panoramic view of the Alps. We frequently stopped to admire the beauty in front of us. As we hiked along the trail we passed through farmer's fields, crossing the fence into their pastures. I felt like I was trespassing but the sign posts clearly marked the trail so we continued on. I was a little concerned while I was inside the fence because I knew the reason for the fence was to keep the animals in. I kept one eye on the view and one eye watching for the bull I was sure was waiting for me.
As we walked up and down the hills we heard the cows, actually we heard the bells around their necks. We could tell the bells were different sizes as the sounds were clearly different tones. I was so excited when we happened upon the herd and saw them wearing their bells. Thankfully, they were on the other side of the fence and there was no bull in sight. We finished this hike glad we heard the cow bells.

The path in the park

One evening while Doug and I were out on our evening walk we decided to take the tram to a place we hadn't explored yet. Doug knew there was a park in the area and so we tried to find it. We walked through a beautiful neighborhood with small homes and courtyards, perfectly manicured hedges, and quiet streets. We found the park at the end of the street and a map sign giving us a general idea of where we were headed. It was so peaceful as we walked the paths through the woods near the Rhone river bank. We were aware of the fact that it was getting late and since we didn't have a flashlight we decided to head back. We took a path leading away from the river and ended up walking through another farmer's field. This time though there were no sign posts leading the way. Once again I was listening for cow bells, this time hoping not to hear any. The only cow we saw this time was the cow statue on the lawn of the farmer's house.

The farmer's front lawn

I learned a few things about the reason cows wear bells in Switzerland when I visited MEG (Geneva Ethnography Museum). Cows are brought to the pastures in the Alps during the summer. So cow bells were hung around the necks of cows to help locate and organize the herd. The bells not only made noise but they actually composed a recognizable tune that the farmer could identify. Bells of different tones were assigned to the cows depending on how the cow walked, how big they were and where in the herd the cow would walk. This made perfect sense to me as I recalled all the times I would help call the cows home at grandma's farm and they always walked in the same order, single file.

Serious ceremonial cow bells 

It is too difficult to get the milk down the mountains everyday in the summer so the farmers make cheese while the cows are living in the mountains for four months. Since there are no cheese factories in the Alps all the cheese is made daily over an open fire in a large cooper vat. At the end of summer many towns celebrate the day that the cows come home out of the mountains. It marks the end of the alpine cheese production. This alpine cheese is highly valued because of the quality of the milk from which it is made. On the morning of the last Saturday of September the farmers dress in their traditional working clothes, decorate their cows with huge ceremonial bells and lead them down the mountain while the yodelers, alphorn players and people cheer. We will miss seeing this festival.