The
final segment of the Alp Triangle Wanderweg was to Switzerland. From the Stuttgart area it only took about 4
hours to get down there and what surprised me the most, more so than the high
prices, was all the tunnels to drive through.
We made a brief stop in Interlaken to change money and splurge on a coffee
for 5.50 francs. The heat of the day
quickly blew away with the afternoon winds kicking up signaling a rain shower
that was soon to come. By the time we
drove to Grindelwald the rain was heavy.
We found another wonderful camping facility by a river and waited out
the passing storm. Parts of the town and
the surrounding views are pretty enough but this would not be a place I would
want to stay for any length of time.
The next
day we waited until 11am, more rain showers, to take the lift up to First
Station (7113 feet). The weather wasn’t
ideal but good enough for walking. We
were awarded a very beautiful afternoon bathed in sunshine. The walk took us from above tree line back
down into the woods and this trail was also steep. Both of us were singing, telling jokes, and
making up stories to keep our mind off the pain. We finished about 5pm and the next rain
shower made us retreat to our next destination.
Stechelberg
is also located in the Jungfrau region but up another glacial valley. This valley was lovely and is known for
waterfalls. There are 72 of them but
some are inside the mountains. Again, we
found another great camping facility with waterfalls close by. After a long hike, it didn’t take much to
convince me to call it quits about 9pm.
The next
day we packed our overnight bags and took the lift up to Gimmelwald. We reserved the last room available at the
Mitterhorn Hotel. This place is highly
recommended by Rick Steves and with 95% of the guests coming here because of
good ole Rick, I wonder if Rick gets a free night every now and then. After leaving our overnight bag at the hotel,
we took the long way to Murren by following a cow path that went down a steep
slope and after that I declare no more cow trails for the rest of the day. Murren is a bigger town than Gimmelwald and
also a nice place to spend a few hours strolling around taking photos. We enjoyed the evening meal at the Mitterhorn
with the other guests. One thing about the hotel that was odd was you had to pay
for the hot water to take a shower. It
is a common shower and I decided to beat the afternoon crowds by taking one
around 4pm. No one mentioned this pay
system so you can imagine my surprise when I was already to turn on the water
and noticed the sign. Without any change
on me I had to go back to the room to find change. We didn’t have change requiring Dan to walk
down into town to find some. He was
smart and changed a 10 franc bill and was able to help out others also stuck
without change.
I slept
with one eye open to admire the views of the Jungfrau, the Monch, and the Eiger
peaks outside the window. The next
morning I did not want to leave the bed and the views but it was time to move
on to take the last walk in the alps. We
took the train from Murren to Allmendhubel and walked the North Face
trail. The fields of wildflowers were
spectacular. I read once the miracle on
earth is to walk and I would agree to be able to walk among wildflowers with
these majestic mountains an arm’s length away is a miracle.
The
last night of the tour we stayed at Camping Jungfrau. These facilities were amazing. Everything was clean and well
maintained. Music was even piped into
the shower rooms. The location is
excellent with an easy walk into Lauterbrunner in one direction and a nice
valley walk in the other direction with waterfalls everywhere. What is nice about this spot is it looks like
a national park without the crowds. Staying
here for 3 months would be ideal and this place is also opened year round. Of course the last morning was bright and
sunny and this would have been the day to take the lift to Schilthorn (9748
feet) for mountain views but for 100 franc each, we had to think twice. We will have to use our imagination. I agree with Rick that the Gimmelwald area is
a top pick for European destination.
