Wandern in Lauterbrunnen

Mostly, the photos will speak for themselves today. This is the most beautiful place I've ever seen. We walked out of our hotel and next door to the cable car, which took us up to Grütschalp. From there we hiked up a LOT more to the Lobhornhütte and then around a different path back down, making a big loop. We were hiking for 4 and a half hours, but the maps didn't have distances, so it's hard to guess how far we hiked. It felt like 20 miles 😉, but we loved every second of it. 

This sign said 2.25 hours to our destination. John and I are pretty fit and active, and we were moving at a decent pace, so we thought for sure we'd beat the posted time, but...um...no; it took us 2.5 to get up there! A bit humbling. I guess the average Swisshiker is fitter than the average American. 

A Swiss "cairn". There were no piles of rocks, but these Swiss flag colors were painted on rocks and trees as trail markers. 

This pointy rock formation is what they call the Lobhörner:

Finally arriving at the Lobhornhütte:

One of the things I love about hiking in the Alps is being able to get a beer and hearty food at the top of a mountain!

On the way down, I stopped to soak my feet and knees in the cold brook, and John took a little nap. 

Zürich

We finally got to Zürich yesterday around noon. First stop: lunch at Zeughauskeller. Beautiful ceilings, antique weapons all over the walls, and delicious food. 

Then we wandered around town for a couple of hours

and toured a church (Fraumünster), including 185 steps up one of the spires. 

These tiny footprints ^ were at the base of one of the stairways. Can anyone enlighten me as to why?

Then we strolled down to the water to sit and read for a bit before catching our next train. 

3 trains and 2.5 hours later, we arrived at our hotel in Lauterbrunnen. I love this town. I remember this area very clearly from when I visited with my family 30 years ago. So glad I get to experience it again!

Hotel Siberhorn and views from the hotel

^That metal building on the left is where the gondola to Grütschalp departs, right beside our hotel.

Dinner time stroll:

And quite possibly the best meal I've had so far this trip - Farmer Röstli (roast potatoes covered in cheese, mushrooms, onions, and ham):

We took a midnight train, going...

...to Switzerland. From midnight to 1:30ish, we took a train trip from Munich, Germany, to Salzburg, Austria. We were supposed to have a short layover at the Salzburg station, and then board a train (complete with sleeping car reservations) that would take us into Zürich. Unfortunately, that train ran into some bad weather and trees across the tracks, which delayed it by almost 3 hours. 

So after a little nap on the floor of the Salzburg train station:

We finally got into our sleeping compartment after 4:30 AM (Thursday).  

I had that top bunk (way at the top of the photo).  It was surprisingly relaxing. I was lulled to sleep by the rocking of the train and slept until at least 10AM. Once we awakened, the views from the train window were spectacular! 

Because of the delays, we did not have the entire day in Zürich, as planned, but we still had enough time to tour around a bit and do some more eating! More on that soon. For now, I need to catch up on my sleep.