Switzerland, 9.6.16 - 9.17.16, Part 3 of 13: Mannlichen
After visiting The Schilthorn and seeing the incredible views from the Birg Station, we retraced our steps back down to Murren, walked through town, took the cog train back to Grutschalp and descended back down to Lauterbrunnen. Our day was only half over at this point so we hopped on a different cog train that took us up the opposite valley wall to another beautiful town called Wengen.
Wengen’s claim to fame is that it is considered the birthplace of downhill ski racing. And no wonder. Every bit of terrain we encountered on this day was all part of the ski terrain in the winter months. There were lifts everywhere and we just kept imagining how amazing it must be to ski in this beautiful place (Note to self. Must go back in Winter). In Wengen we crossed the tracks, walked about a block to a cable car that led straight up this side of the valley to the ridge of Männlichen.
Cable car from Wengen to Männlichen
I was very excited to arrive in Männlichen. As mentioned, this is a high ridge in a perfectly placed position of being right in the middle of everything. At one end it is butted up to the Eiger where there is a rail station called Kleine Sheidegg. Moving north and away from Kleine Scheidegg, there is a trail that skirts the flanks of two points, the first being the Lauberhorn and the second named Tschuggen. It is the north end of Tschuggen that our cable car station was.
A herd of cows were residing on the ridge and they seemed to be fond of Bridgit, The Cow Whisperer. The milk cow with a bell around its neck is a classic Swiss image so of course we had to get at least a few shots of the Swiss cows. I was told by the way, that the older the cow, the bigger the bell and that the bells are on the cows because they let them roam the high mountainsides grazing all summer and the bells make it easier to find them.
Elsie the cow, unhappy with her Borden’s contract
If you headed north from the station there is a lovely half mile walk called The Royal Walk that leads to the high point at the north end of the Männlichen ridge. It was surprising how much more came into view with each step.
Mannlichen, with Tschuggen in the foreground and The Lauberhorn behind
The Royal Walk was a pleasant stroll that gained 371’ to a viewing platform with a gold crown around it as a railing.
Dana on The Royal Walk
As we got higher we had a great view down into the Lauterbrunnen Valley. The lighting wasn’t the best but you can get an idea of just how beautiful this valley truly is with its high cliff walls on both sides, the lush green valley floor and big waterfalls coming down the sides of the cliffs all up and down the valley.
Lauterbrunnen Valley
Lauterbrunnen Valley
Once we got to the top of the Royal Walk, not only did we have a commanding view of the Jungfrau Massif, but also new views in every direction. We were very excited to spot the Faulhorn Berghotel high on top of the ridge to the north. This would be our destination the following day and what we anticipated to be the highlight of the entire trip.
The Faulhorn Berghotel is at the top center of photo
The team on the Royal Walk
In a perfect world the clouds would have completely disappeared but it wasn’t to be. I knew from my research that the panoramic view from this exact spot would be one of the best views on the entire trip but the clouds did not cooperate and the Jungfrau Massif played peek-a-boo all afternoon. To be honest, it really didn’t bother me too much because everything we were looking at was still so incredible and I was in Switzerland so it was all good.
Looking south from the Royal Walk. Grindelwald would be down to the left and Wengen, Lauterbrunnen, Murren and the Schilthorn would be to the right.
Dana and Gina all smiles on the Royal Walk
So far we had basically gone around Männlichen ridge by train, explored the west area above Lauterbrunnen, climbed up to the Männlichen ridge and now to get back to Grindelwald we hopped on a gondola (4 seats per gondola) and descended back down into Grindelwald to complete an ambitious loop of sightseeing and exploration. Even without any views, the amount of different modes of transportation would have made the day worth it. Several times we felt like we were on some gigantic Disneyland ride.
It had been an action packed day but we got back to the Gletschergarten in time to watch the sun going down as we sipped our wine on the balcony (I’m trying to impress upon you all how primitive and rough our existence was).
Golden evening sun on the Mettenberg from our hotel balcony. Pardon my Swiss, but F***ing unbelievable!
Sunset on the flanks of the Wetterhorn
That night Bob and I walked to a pizza place and brought pizzas back to the balcony. The next day would be my 59th birthday and to celebrate we planned on hiking 3 1/2 miles and 1,578’ of vertical to stay overnight in a hotel that had been perched on top of this mountain since 1830. I was so excited I could hardly sleep.
This concludes Part 3. Stay tuned for Part 4: The Faulhorn