The resort of Crans Montana in canton Valais likes to think it offers something for everyone. Over the next three Thursdays (September 7 to 21), it has set its sights on early risers.

People willing to get up at the crack of dawn can join an outing, which the tourist office calls: "A morning on the alpine pasture of Colombire".

It all starts on the Alp at six o'clock when participants, weather permitting, will be rewarded with a view of the sunrise over some of the majestic 4,000-metre high peaks visible from the resort, including the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc.

After a typical alpine breakfast, the early risers will visit cowsheds to watch the milking - the first stage in the making of cheese - before the cows are put out to pasture. Then it's off along a botanical footpath. And that's all before 10 o'clock in the morning!

The walk then leads to a cheese cellar where the final stages in the cheese-making process will be explained. A look around a museum on the pasture of Colombire will reveal how things were done on the Alp in the first half of the 20th century.

And what better way to end the morning than by enjoying Raclette - a traditional cheese meal.

swissinfo

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