Adventure in the Alps 2016 Part 1: First to Schwarzhorn
Forrest turned 40 in 2016. Years ago we had agreed that for our fortieth birthdays, we could choose whatever trip we wanted. Forrest chose 2 weeks in the Alps, climbing Via Ferratas and staying at high mountain huts. For the next few days, I'll be sharing the memories of our amazing adventures making his birthday wishes come true.
Our trip began in Grindelwald, Switzerland, a small town surrounded by enormous mountain peaks. Rather than spending the night in the town when we arrived, we took the cable car up to Berggasthaus First to spend the night overlooking the valley.
We sat on the deck for hours, watching the clouds pass over the mountains, weaving in and out of their crevasses and sipping on Cornalin, wishing we could get this treat at home. Eventually we were called in for dinner. 24+ hours of traveling isn't the easiest on the body and after falling asleep early, I woke in the middle of the night to a magical view that prompted me to get out my camera gear and shoot the night sky through the open window.
Sleep came quickly and easily after my midnight photo shoot and we woke just before dawn and rushed to the deck.
We got a beautiful view of the hike that lay ahead as the sun outlined the Schwarzhorn peak. We'd start easy today, with a short, non technical hike up Schwarzhorn to loosen up our legs from the days of travel.
The start of the trail passed through the ski areas, lifts abandoned until the winter snowfall began. Cows grazed on the lush grasses, curiously watching us as we passed.
It didn't take long for us to make our way out of the trail hiking into rock scrambling. There was a small patch of snow, still lingering despite the warmth of the summer.
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On the way down the trail, we spotted a pair of Chamois and deviated slightly away from the trail to see if I could get close enough to photograph them. The height of the sun and the similarity of their coats to the rock made it difficult to say the least. But, I was at least grateful to have added the Sony 70-200 to my bag at the last minute. Along the way, I had to stop and photograph the beautiful little wildflowers, too, though.
When we finally made our way down to the lower trail, we ran into quite the roadblock! These stubborn cows absolutely refused to move off the trail.
We made our way off the mountain back down to Grindelwald and the adorable First Gondola station. Our next stop will be our first close up view of The Eiger... but more on that next post.
While I handled all the still camera gear, Forrest filmed with his Go-Pro. Check out his footage and comical commentary as we make our way to Schwarzhorn.