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After being in the city (Prague) for six weeks this summer I thought it was time for the outdoors and mountains in particular. So, with my remaining 9 travel days in Europe I headed to Switzerland. I enjoyed the Jungfrau region so much on my first journey there in 2006 (see blog here:
http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Switzerland/blog-384092.html) that it was on my list of places to return. However, on this trip I wanted to get in some different some different hikes. After walking through the village of Wengen on my last trip I picked it as my place to stay for this visit. Daniel, the manager at the Hotel Edelweiss where I was located, provided a suggestion for a hike to Rotstockhutte. It turned out to be a great suggestion and a beautiful circuit. It included seeing the picturesque village of Murren at the start, great mountain views, wildflowers, cows, waterfalls, and even tasty pie in the middle. So, if you happen to be in the area around the Lauterbrunnen Valley you might consider this for a day hike. I have arranged the pictures in this blog sequentially from the hike with the exception of the first three to give you an idea of
what the landscape might look like.
I started by taking the train from Wengen down into Lauterbrunnen and then transferring to the lift that goes up the side of the valley. Once at the top of the other side of the valley I took the train into Murren. This whole process takes about an hour. From there you hike through Murren. The village is very scenic and has great mountain views. I’m thinking it would make for a nice location to stay in the future. As you make your way to the end of the town the trail starts and you just follow the signs for Rotstockhutte. The trail takes you through some pastures at first and then through the forests. The landscape soon opens up and you get fantastic views from a plateau area of the mountains around you. About 45 minutes to an hour into the hike you hit a set up switchback trails that have a steep incline. This is really the only difficult climb on the hike and it lasts approximately a half hour. After this you are now on a ridge where you will get the best mountain views of the hike off to
your left.
You should arrive in Rotstockhutte approximately two hours into the hike. This is a great place to take a break, have a cold drink, and have a piece of pie served up by Luzia. After Rotstockhutte the trail is a fairly steep downhill descent all the way to Stechelberg. The first picture in the blog with the wildflowers was taken right after the first gate when leaving Rotstockhutte towards Stechelberg. The flowers and cows both abound in the middle of this hike. Per Daniel’s advice I chose not to go through Gimmelwald but rather the slightly longer route through the valley. Here I really enjoyed walking along the Weisse Lutschine River and seeing its turquoise colors and rapids. As you near Stechelberg you will also be treated to a couple impressive waterfalls. The final hour and a half to two hours of the hike takes you through the beautiful Lauterbrunnen Valley. In the middle you can stop off and see the Trummelbach Falls if you like. Also, if you are there on a day with good weather you may see BASE jumpers landing via parachute (hopefully) after jumping off the cliffs surrounding the valley.
I ended
the hike by taking the train from Lauterbrunnen back up to Wengen. The hike took me about 6 hours from Mirren to Lauterbrunnen but you might want to plan for extra time if you move along a little more slowly. It was a great hike and a nice taste of the Jungfrau region that will have lasting memories for me.
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TinNiE
" Half the fun of the travel is the esthetic of lostness "
Love the photos! This one particularly reminded me of ... ♪♬ the hills are alive with the sound of music ♫♪ . Stunning scenery...