Jen and Dave: Adventuring

We rose early, quietly, and made our way to the ridge for a slow, golden sunrise over the mountains.

After drinking in our fill of liquid gold, we packed, napped, and waited for breakfast.

After eating we got our boots tied, packs on, and started back to the Jennerbahn middle station. Highlights included the antics of the cows, some new flowers, and a stop back at Königsbachalm. We took a different route from the alm to the Jennerbahn, which added some variety, including a small pond with many little fish.

After relaxing on the lawn by the Jennerbahn we rode down, and took the next bus, that happened to drop us off right at our favourite restaurant – perfect to hydrate and fuel before returning to our hotel for an early night.

One thing Jen dreamed of while being a little girl was staying in a chalet in the Alps. Yesterday, the evolved version of that dream came true, as we hiked to Gotzenalm in the German Alps and spent the night.

It was a full day of hiking, catching the hiker’s upload to the middle station of the Jennerbahn, and then making our way across the mountains and up!

Cows were our constant companion on this trip, as were some spectacular views of alpine pastures, woods, sheer mountain faces, and in places the town far below.

We stopped at Königsbachalm for refreshment, replenishment of water bottles, and a short break.

The final push to Gotzenalm was a climb of 560m. We were rewarded with a beautiful plateau, stunning views, a cold beer for Dave and a cold Radner for Jen (okay, she only drank half, but still!).

We relaxed in the patio and enjoyed the mountains until we were able to check in to our room. Then we stretched our legs for half an hour or so to check out the viewpoint of Watzmann and Königssee.

The hut served dinner and then it was time for some rest!

Today was the holiday Corpus Christi, so most things were closed – a perfect excuse for a rest day. We did start by getting up and walking across town to watch Fronleichnam a procession to the church. We also checked out Haus der Berge, the visitor centre for the National Park with a rather modern and interesting interpretive section. And had a nap, and packed for the next two days. We’re off tomorrow to hike into Gotzenalm hut for a night. Assuming all goes to plan, please note that means no blog update tomorrow.

The procession included many banners and objects, a marching band, a choir, and many people in tracht. Modern touches included speakers carried on poles that were connected wirelessly to the microphone. The route was also decorated with hangings and green branches, and “station alters” festooned with candles and flowers.

We bussed back to the Königssee this morning, and this time we got in one of the electric boats that ferry tourists and locals alike about the lake.

The ride was smooth and we enjoyed the towering mountains framing the turquoise waters. At the echo wall our captain played the trumpet, and you could hear multiple echos – it is said you can get as many as seven echos.

We got off at St. Bartholöma, but we weren’t there for the beer gardens or the pilgrimage church with its trademark onion domes – we hit the trail and climbed up into a valley where permanent ice fields form Eiskapelle – the ice chapel. The main cavern had collapsed, but there was still a smaller cavern on a separate piece of ice and a few ice bridges (no, we didn’t go into a cave, but yes we used those bridges to make it look like it!)

After walking back to the boats, we boarded once again, this time headed for Salet. Here we had four legged companions with sharp horns and cowbells around their necks as we walked an easy trail to Oversee – dubbed the prettiest lake in Bavaria and it’s easy to see why. Still turquoise waters framed by pasture, forest, overwhelming mountain faces, and the tallest waterfall in Germany.

We walked to the far side of Oversee, where the proprietors of the Alm were kind enough to sell us sustenance- bread and butter, bread and cheese, a beer and a cola-mix (a local favourite consisting of cola mixed with lemonade). The bread was fresh, the butter and cheese made at the Alm from their own cow’s milk. Incredible.

Then, too soon, it was time to retrace our steps, take the boat back to the town, and the bus back to Berchtesgaden. Grocery shopping for Friday’s hike (as tomorrow is a holiday and everything will be closed), and a hearty dinner.

After a lot of travel yesterday, we thought an easy day made sense. We slept in, had breakfast, and then wandered over to the local castle. Yes, seriously, another one. This one really layers the history, from old monastery to Renaissance rooms, to a royal wedding in the 1950’s, to being the current summer residence of Duke Franz of Bavaria. It was a real life space – there is even a doorway with heights of children with names and dates, including the height of Ludwig in his youth.

The tour was small – just us and a schoolgirl and her mother. It was supposed to be all in German, with English booklets for us to follow along, but the guide kindly added short English translations and additions for us when something was significant, which was so kind. Highly recommend the Schloss Berchtesgaden.

We then did some grocery shopping and retired to our room for lunch and a nap. Refreshed, we spent an hour or do shopping and poking around before dinner – schnitzel for Dave, and a pork knuckle with bread ball dumpling for Jen. Dave said the schnitzel reminded him of fish and chips. Jen found the pork knuckle delicious but rich – it reminded her of the crackling pig at her brother and sister-in-law’s wedding – but the bread dumpling bland and unappetizing in texture.

After dinner we walked north through town to check out shops and architecture and views. Really a lovely town.

If you are King Ludwig II you need to build three of your own, apparently. Today we visited the third, Herrenchiemsee, another incomplete marvel on his own private island in Chiemsee (the “see” means lake). This meant a couple of trains to Prien, a historic narrow gauge train, and a boat.

First order of business upon arrival was lunch, as we had missed a connection and it was quite late. Dave tried a traditional soup of the region – pancake soup! Jen tried the local fish, zander, with spinach risotto. Yum!

We walked the quiet trails after lunch, enjoying the fields, broad-leaf trees, and pleasant weather. Suddenly, we turned a corner and… wow. Herrenchiemsee.

Herrenchiemsee was inspired by Versailles, as King Ludwig II was a fan of King Louis XIV. The grounds were nice, the inside spectacular. Alas, no photos allowed in the tour section, but imagine gold leaf to an inch of your life, thousands of candles on special candelabras and chandeliers, and a hall of mirrors bigger than Versailles. And a gorgeous porcelain chandelier.

After the tour and the museum we wandered the grounds and eventually made our way back to our current home away from home.

Getting back to town late, we grabbed donair and ate on our petite balcony. What a great day.

We decided that another day of clear sky meant Eagle’s Nest would be a good destination. Unfortunately, so did half of Berchtesgaden and the first transit bus to the ticket station got us to the end of a very crowded 1+ hour line – just to board busses to get you there. We considered it, and went to a different, empty bus line – the one to go back to town. From there we hopped on another bus to go to Ramsau instead.

Ramsau is a cute, picturesque little town on the river, with a beautiful church called St. Sebastian being the centre of its social media fame. We also really enjoyed a giant mister room near the playground- the diffusers were branches cut to length, very cool (pun intended).

We then wandered through village and forest, tracing the river and watching its changing ways.

En route are beer gardens – both closed today – and a joyous mechanical toy powered by waterwheel that was just a delight to watch.

At the head you meet the Hintersee, which is beautiful. Framed by alternating pasture, forest, mountain and sky, the turquoise hue of the lake was instantly calming.

We enjoyed a meal on the patio before finding a rock to sit on and soak in the sun. We returned to Berchtesgaden by bus.

Mixing it up more from the plan, we decided that the good weather called for alpine hiking. After a lovely breakfast staring at the scenery, we made our way to the Jennerbahn, a gondola in the Berchtesgaden National Park.

Then it was time to go up! And what a view from the top!

We decided to hike to Stahl-haus, which is in Austria. A lovely hike. Reaching it, we decided to do a jaunt partway up Schneibstein Mountain, with Jen turning back just as two-hands scrambling was required. Dave did the scramble and went up to the viewpoint 1/3 of the way before turning around.

Then we settled in for a drink and sandwiches at Stahl-haus before heading back towards the Jennerbahn.

Making better time than anticipated, we added a quick summit of Jenner itself, which rewarded us with ridiculously good views.

We ended our time on the mountain with currywurst, fries, beer, and sparkling water. This currywurst had a more typical sauce – warm ketchup and curry powder, which is way more delicious than it sounds.

Descending the mountain afforded us more great views.

After returning to base, we wandered to Lake Königssee, and took in the turquoise waters, wooden boat houses, and traditional architecture.

At the end of a long day we gathered to take the bus back. As did too many others. With twice as many people in line as there was space, we missed the bus and decided to walk back to the hotel. This was a mixed blessing, as it was a lovely route that we would have never found. There was even a traditional gathering going on with live music, dancing, and people in tracht (traditional clothing). Unfortunately, it did also add many extra kilometres onto a long day and lead to a later night than planned.

We said farewell to Füssen today, and hit the rails. Four trains and 6.5 hours later, we pulled into Berchtesgaden Hbf. We made our way up the hill, and checked into our hotel.

The weather had just cleared, and the view from the street is magnificent. We wandered the old town a bit, then grabbed dinner. Baked Camembert and currywurst, delicious. Dessert was an Austrian specialty called “Wamperlspreizer-Kaiserschmarr’n,” served with applesauce. It was so delicious, but we couldn’t possibly finish!

Now we’re unpacking our bags and packing out hiking backpacks to hit the trails tomorrow!

Between the rain in the forecast and the impact yesterday had on Dave’s knees, we decided on a simple wander day. We started by sleeping in until breakfast time.

After breakfast, we wandered around the old city walls some more before walking to the river. Dave checked out the dam, then we followed it to Forggensee, a nearby lake.

Wandering back to town, Dave wanted to check out an international McDonald’s.

Next up was a nap at the hotel before some browsing local stores. Jen bought drindl fabric to one day make an apron. Dinner was on the main street, bruschetta and a delicious fresh pasta filled with ricotta, paired with spinach, tomatoes, arugula and a light cream sauce.