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Published: September 22nd 2018
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Today was our catchup day with our old Swiss friend, Mariann. We had decided that not matter what socializing we did today, it had to include using the Swiss Travel Pass as they are expensive - F900 for 15 days or around $1000+ of ours. After spending the morning with Mariann at her house she agreed to come with us to Kandersteg where we went many years ago but hadn't been back. We would either go up to the Lake Oschinesee or to Sunbuel which Mariann had been told was a lovely place to go to. The lake we had been to before and is one of the icons of mountain lake photos so always worth a visit. However, we were happy to go to somewhere new too.
We set off from Interlaken West station to Spiez then changed to a train going through the mountains to Brig. This an amazing piece of engineering as Kandesteg sits right at the end of a valley heading into the high alps so you cannot drive across anywhere here. Instead, the cars are loaded onto a train, one car to a wagon and transported through the Alps. Also, for trains to get to
this height they have to go through a long spiral in order to climb so a tunnel takes you one minute facing down the valley, then up the valley, then down and finally back up.
We decided that we would go and take a look at Sunbuel high above Kandersteg but we had missed the bus up by about a minute. Of course. We were informed that we could walk to the Talstation in about half and hour so off we went through the village. Mariann is now almost 80 but she has lost none of her speed or her ability to walk the distances. Amazing. The walk up through the village is simply lovely. It is a stunning setting surrounded by very high mountains of visibly folded rocks. On the way we passed the International Scout Camp which we had visited years before when I had been a Scout and Guide leader. I remember visiting but not the details. It is still a large scouting concern from the complex we could see.
At the end of the valley we were just in time for the cable car going up. There are a myriad of tramping tracks to
explore going up each valley at the end of the main one so it is a hikers paradise. As you go up in the cable car you see steep valleys, massive rock faces, rivers below, glaciers and finally to a basin of trees, grass and gravel at Sunbuel. Much is made of the sun in this basin where are there are loungers to lie on, a restaurant (of course) and many walks to tarns and beyond. It would be a great location to return to for some tramping. Today it was quiet and at the end of the season so we only saw a few hikers. Once again, a lovely quiet place to visit away from the hoards.
We couldn't stay as it was getting late in the day and it would take quite some time to return in reverse. Fortunately there was a bus at the Talstation to get us back to the Bahnhof where we didn't have to wait too long for a train. Finally, back in Interlaken we spent the evening and dinner with Mariann and were dropped off by car back at our apartment. The threatening rain had arrived as forecast but we had got in another fabulous day of scenery and walking.
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