Alpine Ibexes Captured Resting on Chimneys of French Cottages Amidst a Breathtaking Background

“The Alpine Ibex (Capra ibex) is found in the European Alps. Due to overhunting, they almost became extinct in the 1800’s, but were saved by conservationists, most notably the Dukes of Savoy. Today, Alpine Ibex are found in France, Bulgaria, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Germany and Slovenia, and have been introduced to ranches in the United States, Canada and Argentina.”

NOTE: this article was originally published to TheEpochTimes.com on January 1, 2023. It was written by Anna Mason. Photos are via Julien Grincajgier.

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Captured relaxing atop the roofs of French cottages on chimneys with Mont Blanc as the backdrop, these wild goats must surely enjoy the best views in town. 

Award-winning filmmaker and storyteller, Julien Grincajgier, who originally hails from France but currently lives in Florida with his wife, was visiting his mom, who lives near Switzerland, during the summer of 2022 when he came across an amazing spectacle —alpine Ibexes basking in the sun with the highest peak in Europe in the background.

“It’s like a nice painting,” Grincajgier told The Epoch Times.

Witnessing this unique sight, he captured the shot on his iPhone and the resulting video went viral on TikTok, amassing 200,000 views on just the first first day. Social media users were impressed at both the surrounding views and the animals’ prowess.

Grincajgier has also shared some more videos of these majestic creatures resting on the chimneys of chaumière, which translates as french cottages. 

 Ibex are known for their gravity-defying feats; even scaling up vertical dams and rockfaces with their concave hooves that tend to act like their suction cups in order to hold tight to even the tiniest of surfaces.

Grincajgier told The Epoch Times, that there is one goat that likes to go up there every day, and it seems the animal really enjoys sitting in that particular spot.

“The view is nice,” Grincajgier said.

While these ibexes certainly seem comfortable in close proximity to humans, Grincajgier warns that they can be aggressive and thus suggests not trying to touch them even if they appear friendly.

Apart from capturing ibexes chilling on rooftops in the European alps, Grincajgier also runs a wedding video company, Light and Motion Films, and shoots wedding movies worldwide.