Today we’re off to Stechelberg, it’s our local hiking Mecca.
There’s a little hydro-electric station here, and behind it the generating company have built a nature reserve. The two ponds were full of frogspawn last time we were here, and now there are thousands of tadpoles. Press play.
It’s fascinating to watch.
It’s about 6 kilometres back to Lauterbrunnen, and it’s a hot day. Off we set.
We’re off to Ali’s for dinner tonight.
Last night we heard some reports saying that Lauterbrunnen had been swamped with tourists over the weekend. This could be a problem, as we want to be able to walk safely in the valley. We walk down to check things out.
There’s a whole network of paths between Wengen and Lauterbrunnen.
We need to cross the track here.
For many, Lauterbrunnen is merely a railway halt where you change trains on your way to Wengen or Mūrren. That’s a shame, it definitely deserves a closer look.
One last one, in case you’re still unconvinced.
It took us around an hour and a half to walk down, and we needn’t have worried about crowds – it was deserted. The train took us back to Wengen in just 12 minutes.
It must be time to start running again, and there’s no time like the present. The first one’s always a bit tough.
There’s a supermoon coming in the next few days, but already it’s bright enough at night for some nice photos.
This morning it’s absolutely glorious.
Our walk takes us to a cluster of houses called Stutzweidli. It’s just above the village on a big meadow next to the ski run.
A fallen tree almost demolished this bench.
It’s still possible to ski, as long as you don’t mind walking up.
This girl decided that it was a good day for skiing in shorts. It really is that warm!
We pick up the forest path at chalet Oberland and head back towards the village. Nice walk.
Back in the village, the football table that we spotted yesterday has disappeared. It has found a new home.
Emily was working hard cooking our dinner last night. A very nice beef goulash with mashed potatoes.
If you want to dispose of a piece of furniture or other large items, you buy a label from the Co-op and put them out for the council to collect. Before buying a label however, it’s usual to offer stuff for free by leaving it outside. You see some unusual things:
We’ve heard rumours that some parapente pilots have been walking up to Männlichen in order to enjoy the flight back to the village. That’s a climb of 1000 vertical metres, carrying a parachute and harness. I didn’t really believe it. It turns out to be true.
Hazy sunshine today, and a bit warmer for our walk.
The busiest people in the valley seem to be the helicopter pilots. They’re running non-stop. This one is moving building materials. Another spent all morning shifting fallen trees from the forest just below our path.
The forest is full of flowers now. With the fine weather forecast to continue, we should have some good displays in a week or two.
We have very clear air today, which provides wonderful views.
Here’s Philipp with one of his remote controlled planes.
And off it goes. It managed 3 laps of the nursery slope before crashing.
Mushroom season is in the autumn, but mushrooms can be dried so they can be enjoyed all year round.
Beanie and Sandro dried some local mushrooms last autumn, and they gave me some for Christmas, along with some rice. A quick shop for white wine, shallots and chicken means we can have a super risotto for dinner later.
Last night we decided to light the fire. It works really well. Here’s Emily’s Instagram post.
It’s cold but sunny today, so we can get out for a walk. We head for Innerwengen.
Last week we saw newborn lambs at the farm, and today it’s goats.
Daddy goat turns out to be very friendly.
A good walk, and we soon forgot about the cold. When we got home the postman had delivered our internet SIM card, so now we can watch TV without having to fiddle with mobile phones or worry about how many megabytes we’re using.
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