Day 5: Hiking near Wengen

Day 5: Wengen

Yesterday

Today

Weather:  Rain during the evening, sometimes hard, still raining in the morning. On the morning hike: light snow flurries, a bit of rain, bright sky (no sun), cool temps (probably high 30's to mid 40's), clearing in the afternoon for THB's second hike of the day (and still in mid 40's)

Tram sights:

QOTD:

Well, my heart's in the highlands, gentle and fair
Honey suckle bloomin' in the wildwood air
Bluebells blazin' where the Aberdeen waters flow
Well, my heart's in the highlands, I'm gonna go there when
I feel good enough to go.

Another shabby night’s sleep, interrupted by a facetime pocket call. Combo of being tired from the hike, a bit sore from the hike, a bit of jet lag, not enough drugs (if you list more than two things, is it still a “combo”?). At least the night light in the bathroom made it less harsh to get up in the middle of the night.

Breakfast buffet: frosted shredded wheat with yogurt and toast with rhubarb jam. The leaders decide on a flat hike starting at the top of the tram ending in Kleine Scheidegg. DB and JW decide to stay back, the hike may be in some weather and there was plenty of snow last night.

Not sure: go left...or no entry?

The seven hikers make the 10:10 tram, which is totally full, mostly of one large group (Americans!). We head off into the fog: at one point, maybe 20-30 meters down the paved trail, the first three can no longer see the other four further back (we can hear them!). Soon, the cloud lifts and we’re in very slight rain/snow for a short while followed by the absence of wind and a very bright sky (though not sunny).

THB has no idea what this says

By the time we hit the midway hut about 50 minutes along everyone is quick to shed layers even though the temp is at most in the 40's.

5 of the 7 hikers, getting selfie-ready

The Silverhorn peaking way up in the sky through a blue hole

THB's meal

A bit after noon we’re just short of the railway station at Kleine Scheidegg and decide to eat at the Berg restaurant on the near side of town (like there's a lot to this town). The food is excellent: THB has the roesti potatoes mit bratwurst and a brewski, and picks up the lunch tab: $158 (very reasonable).

The short walk to the K-S train station

In the train station

The train ride back to Wengen is spectacular: meadows full of wildflowers, very green steep mountain sides, and many waterfalls. THB is so enamored he convinces DB to take the train two stops towards Kleine Scheidegg and walk back to Wengen and back in time (47 years back) when we were 20 and spending the summer in Europe and promised ourselves we would return for just this type of vacation.

 

One stop from K-S, two from Wengen

7.5 in Celsius, around 45 Fahrenheit

THB in purple and bright blue and dark blue

Ski Lift

The rest of the group takes a different trip: heading off to a waterfall inside a mountain; the reports back are it was fantastic, too.

That's Gruyere melting and "shaved" above potatoes

Rest up for dinner across the street from the hotel, at Bernerhof. THB and DB share a mediocre steak/frites and a raclette, and each have a small salad from the 1950s salad bar. Raclette here is huge rectangular slabs of Gruyere under a heating element above a ramekin filled with small new potatoes. You scrape the cheese onto the potatoes and (if you want) add in some pickled mini-veggies. At the other end of the table, they ordered bacon and put that on the top of the cheese slab so the bacon browned into the melted cheese. Hmmmmmm….$110/couple.