Trip down memory lane in Wengen

After a busy but really great week combining work and pleasure, it was fantastic , for the first time for years,to head towards Wengen with Dennis, who had never been in this area in summer. It was so much fun to be able to show him around and to raccount stories of this wonderful, sometimes crazy time of my life when in my early twenties I worked there for about 8 seasons and then met Jim there. Very happy memories indeed.

The first view of the Lauterbrunnental is always so impressive, even if you have seen it many times before, with the Staubbach Falls gracefully cascading down the sheer rock face of this incredibly beautiful, dramatic valley. I felt so happy to be back 'home' again!

I had visited the Trummelbach Falls several times years ago and very nearly didn't go in again. But, with such reasonable prices, CHF 11.--, I decided to keep Dennis company, and boy, was I pleased I did. I am sure they have opened up a lot more for visitors to view, and the price also included a steep lift to take you up 100 metres through the rock face. It was amazing. There are 10 different viewing platforms to see how the waterfall has carved its way through the solid rock, weaving its way, this way and that, down to the valley floor. The deafening noise of the water surging through the narrow chasms was phenomenal, the sheer power of nature awesome! This is certainly the best value for money for visitors to Switzerland. Apparently the visitor numbers in Switzerland have increased dramatically, with 120 buses parked at the cable car station to the Schilthorn in one day and up to 600 buses passing through Interlaken. It seemed unimagineable!

Once outside, we had our first marvelous view up the valley towards car- free Wengen, nestled up on the hills above, at 1300 m above sea level.

The Falls visit was certainly a fantastic start to our short stay in the area.

Once settled into our hotel in Wengen, we set off on what used to be one of my favourite short afternoon walks, to Staubbachbaenkli. 

Here I used to sit and admire the breathtaking view of the valley below and mountains above, with only the sound of cowbells and waterfalls. It is heaven on earth there and a place for contemplation,!

The picturesque chalets with their absolutely gorgeous window boxes, perfectly stacked wood and neatest vegetable gardens imagineable  all added to the total experience of this lovely area.

Returning to Wengen, we had a great overview of this tranquil, sprawling village, where new meets old, not always a perfect match! From here I could see the balcony of the room I was lucky enough to have, with an uninterrupted view down the valley and up to the famous Jungfrau and the beautiful Silberhorn.

Fortunately, I decided to walk down to my old hotel on the offchance  that we might meet a friend of mine, Margaret, who married my ex boss, Paul. We were in luck. The whole family was there, so we had a wonderful catch up in the garden bar area. It was so nice for Dennis to be able to see where I used to work and who I worked with. A lot has changed but much remains the same. There is still a great family feeling about the hotel and yet it is quite luxuriously furnished. From outside it looks just about the same. Pity the Jungfrau and Silberhorn were hiding behind the clouds.

After a pizza, we had a fabulous evening on the communal balcony of our hotel, with a bottle of wine shared also with a very pleasant American couple, enjoying  the magnificent  silhouettes of the surrounding mountains and the clear skies where more and more planets and stars became visible as the evening progressed. No car pollution and virtually no light pollution, so a perfect place for star gazing and a peaceful place to sit and listen to the waterfalls on the other side of the valley, interrupted of course by the local church bells!

Wow! The weather on Sunday was perfect, though a little on the hot side ( to say the least! - somewhat different temperature to our mountain experiences in Iceland) with cloudless blue skies. What better conditions could one hope for to be up in the mountains on the Maennlichen, 2000 metres + above sea level.  The panoramic view from this seat was absolutely breathtaking, and the carpet of flowers, here mostly buttercups with some Enzian and tiny little orchids amongst them, made it a perfect place to sit and breathe in the fresh mountain air and marvel at the surroundings.

The carpets of blue lupins in Iceland and this incredible ground cover of bright yellow, shiny buttercups were unforgettable sights and reminders of how lucky we are to be able to see such things.

The Swiss undoubtedly have some of the world's most amazing playgrounds, often thousands of metres above sea level, like this one,  and the use of this giant cow as a slide, and on the top were bells for kids to ring, was really clever.

We were certainly not alone on the Maennlichen. The cable car ran non- stop, every ten minutes,  each time bringing another 100 visitors up the hill. Most of those took the Panorama Weg, which used to be a favourite of mine, but we decided to try another path, the Romantik Weg, which was longer, with no sheer drops at the side of the pah, and as well as this, we were virtually alone there to truly enjoy the experience of walking in the mountains.
I have always detoured to the two tarns below the main pathway, and today the track went right past. The reflection of the mighty Eiger North Wall was near perfect there. Just a gentle, very welcome breeze, occasionally caused a few ripples. What a panorama!

Not only did we see the standard buttercups, but also these magnificent huge ones. I need to check the name.  I have never seen such huge clumps of them and their colour was such an incredible contrast to the lush green grass-covered rocks and mountains behind them, and of course the deep blue sky! It was spectacular.

Close up they are even more beautiful.

Once again, I am afraid I do not know the name of this plant which grows in alpine areas, but I find it really pretty.

We were lucky enough to be there just as the majority of the Alpenroses were in flower. Now instead of carpets of yellow, we enjoyed a wide expanse of pink flowers and green foliage. It was such a fabulous sight.

Time to make a decision , either up 45 minutes to Kleine Scheidegg or down 45 minutes to the little station and restaurant at Alpiglen, at the foot of the majestic Eiger. With temperatures over 30, no shade and little water, the decision was not difficult. We walked down on a very pleasant, winding  pathway, always with the Eiger towering above us, the lovely Grosse Scheidegg in front of us, and on each side of the track, fields of golden buttercups. 

Just as I ran out of water, we spotted our cafe in the distance. Our decision was wise and the walk wonderful. The litre and a half of water we ordered was very quickly downed! I could not believe how thirsty I was. We had done 23,500 steps, so we deserved a drink and rest I think!

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It was good to jump on the train up to Kleine Scheidegg. What a lot of people there! Yet, on the walk, we had seen very few. Perfect choice. Despite the crowds behind us, this view was just a fantastic reminder of the wonderful years I spent in the beautiful Berner Oberland. My home for many years, the place I learned to ski, and without a doubt the place where I learned to love the outdoors and to cherish what nature has to offer.

It was a brilliant weekend shared with a great friend.