Deep-Eaved Alpine Chalet

Deep-Eaved Alpine Chalet is an original illustration set in Bernese Alps, Switzerland. It lies in mid-latitudes, where the climate is warm-summer humid continental.

A deep-eaved timber chalet stands with balconies full of red geranium boxes. Rows of flat stones weight the wooden shingle roof. A perfectly kept hay meadow drops away below, and cows are coming down from the high pasture in crisp autumn light.

Why are stones laid on top of the shingle roof?

The stones hold the shingles against the downslope wind that funnels along an alpine valley — cheaper and more repairable than nailing. Deep eaves shed snow clear of the walls. Cattle descending from high summer pasture is a seasonal movement dictated by snowline, and the hay meadow below is what they will eat once it closes.

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