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| Kanisfluh from our room at 7:38 that morning |
The bus to Schönenbach leaves from the square between our hotel, the tiny supermarket, the church and the school. Distance-wise, it's not far - less than 8 km. But the bus journey still feels rather long, as the bus has to go slowly for most of the way on a narrow winding road through dense woods along a stream. Two vehicles passing each other is very difficult, overtaking as good as impossible. I remembered the bus ride well from three years ago and consider it part of the adventure.
About Schönenbach itself I have written before (click the link at the top of this post, if you like), and we found it unchanged - there were still many more cows than people, and because those cows are so used to walking and resting everywhere and having people around, they are completely relaxed, and I wasn't at all afraid of them.
They weren't interested in us anyway, and we set off on our hike, a round tour above Schönenbach, reaching the bus stop again after 3 hours and 10 minutes of walking, which we enjoyed greatly.
Just like in 2023, the alp houses where the cow farmers and cheese makers live during the summer (and often sell food and drink to hikers) were closed already until next May or so, such as this one:
I was happy to spot gentian along the way:
Coming back towards Schönenbach, the last part of the hike was on the same path where we had started:
We had about an hour to wait for the bus back to Bizau and reached the hotel mid-afternoon with enough time for a rest and a shower before getting changed for dinner.
Afterwards, of course we went on our customary sunset walk, and it was really quite spectacular that evening, as my husband's photos illustrate:
We also passed by the tiny private chapel on a hill on the outskirts of Bizau we had discovered three years ago:
I don't groan when I see "revisited" but I do wonder if you and your husband plan to see new places in the future where you can visit to discover together. I understand that your main holiday pleasure is hiking and you are surrounded by good hiking territory so perhaps you both feel that you may as well keep close to home and why travel far when there is no need to. Rachel
ReplyDeleteThe relative short distance is certainly an argument, Rachel. We can't share the driving, as I don't drive, and flying anywhere would still mean picking up a rental car or other means of transport to access those places that interest us.
DeleteYes, we are planning to discover new places, as we have done many times before in the past, such as Naturns in South Tyrol or last year in September, when for the first time in our lives we visited the Mosel area in Germany.
PS: With "an argument" I mean "a point". Not sure whether I was thinking & writing too German there.
DeleteNo groaning from me either about places revisited - it's not like I have the capacity of storing all your previous photos of various places in my mind... ;) Besides, just like at home, one day is never exactly the same as another! Love the sunset views - and how the light falls on the top of that mountain is fascinating.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Monica! You know better than many that no place and walk is ever exactly the same from one day to the next, like when you visit the old cemetery near you in all seasons.
DeleteGosh, it's so beautiful there and the photos are amazing. It looks like you had lovely weather for your hike.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever been to Mainau, Germany? It was my opening computer screen shot the other day and sure looks interesting.
The weather was great, almost a bit warm for parts of the hike. Shade was welcome!
DeleteMany years ago I've been on Mainau. It's an island in Lake Constance and a tourist magnet; you can only get there by boat and not on your own. It's very beautiful with a palace (still lived in by a family of counts related to the Swedish royal family), and the palace grounds are open to the public. They have a butterfly house, too!
Stunning scenery. I've not been posting for a while as Blogger was not updating my incoming blogs for a good week, so i had no idea you had new posts. It seems to corrected itself now.
ReplyDeleteThis problem of not updating has been going on for about 2-3 weeks, I think. Once I was aware of it, I checked manually every day on those blogs I regularly read to see whether they had written new posts, including yours.
DeleteHow lovely is the landscape around Schönenbach. It is easy to see why you and OK went back there. I guess you need strong thighs to power yourself up those hill paths. What a delightful day out.
ReplyDeleteIt really is beautiful, and with the soundtrack of cow bells rather than cars and other city noises, it is the kind of place where I can really relax.
DeleteFunnily enough, it‘s not my thighs I feel most when going uphill, it‘s getting out of breath and sweating (mainly around my head) that bothers me and makes it so exhausting.
Sometimes it is nice to revisit a location. It's like visiting an old friend.
ReplyDeleteThat‘s true! I can become quite attached to places where I have been particularly happy and that hold good memories for me.
DeleteKanisfluh remembers me from a previous life.
ReplyDeleteIt reconfigures my past. Der Zauberberg. Glorious at dawn and dusk !
Schonenbach : This must be the loveliest long-short bus journey in the world.
I'm pleased the bus takes it slowly ; there's too much obsession with speed these days.
Your photo ought to be on the back cover of your debut novel.
The thriller writer who lives the dream, out of The Sound of Music.
I saw that movie in 1966 when I was 15.
That bus ride is quite something! You watch with bated breath as the driver takes what feels like a million tight curves along that narrow lane, high rock walls on one side and the river, its bed strewn with rocks, on the other. The woods are dappled with sunlight, and at the end you come out in the open, green valley, pastures stretching its entire width and lenght, with cows everywhere and the typical wooden farm houses dotted here and there, and the small white chapel in the middle. There really is something fairy-taleish about it all.
DeleteThose are some really remarkable mountains there.
ReplyDeleteA geologist would have a great time identifying the various layers and formations of rock there, I believe. Seeing them up close and climbing some of them leaves me in awe of the great powers that were (and still are) at work there to produce something so majestic.
DeleteI love all the photos and adventures you post regardless of whether or not they're "revisited" places or not. It's all so beautiful. Thank you for sharing your country with me.
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome, Jennifer - although it‘s not my country 😊 This is Austria, not Germany.
DeleteThank YOU for taking the time to read and comment!
I'm enjoying all these photos. I don't know how one can tell from a photo, but I think you CAN tell that the air is very clear and fresh.
ReplyDeleteThe colours are intense (and even more so in reality), maybe that is part of it.
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