Day 33: Die Zugspitze

It was absolutely the best weather today, so today would be superb for Zugspitzing.
So we were up nice and early to get the 8:30 train, but still we just missed it.  Probably didn’t help going to the wrong station, but hey.  We grabbed a coffee and caught the next train up through the beautiful scenery of green grass fields, villages of painted houses and kids riding their bikes to school through the town streets and bike paths all framed with a beautiful snow covered mountain backdrop.

Everybody wants a photo of the blue train

Track maintenance meant a replacement bus to the last station, which was a good thing as we got to travel through the little village of Grainau.  It was lovely seeing the houses and buildings all decorated with elaborate murals and wood carvings.
The bus dropped us off at Eibsee, where we boarded the cog wheel train which just powered up the steep mountain.  It really was pretty steep, especially when you try to stand up and almost fall backwards…

Yep, lots and lots of those awesome views, just getting better and better the higher we climbed until, according to the commentary the most exciting part of the train journey….
7 or so km through a dark tunnel, where they run through a safety video on the train with the assurance of nothing being demonstrated actually likely to be required.  I liked looking at the views more.  Though it is pretty amazing how they could dig this tunnel back in 1936, through solid rock and around a number of corners, and uphill and then somehow manage to come out in exactly in the right spot, and not off some cliff face.
So we step off this train, walk through some corridors and climb a few steps and then we are in this beautiful open area of brilliant white snow with views that went forever.  Well 170km according to the info board.  And it’s a lovely balmy 5 degrees outside.

We then caught the glacier cable car up to the summit.  So high; with awesome views but I am not all all very comfortable in these damn high places.  I hate taking my phone out of my pocket as I think I’m going to drop it into oblivion, with the probability of dropping increasing exponentially with the height involved.

The insane can actually climb up to the peak and have their photo taken.

Yes, bring your dogs, they'll appreciate the awesome views

Bratwurst and beer at Germany’s highest beer garden, along with being pooed on by one of the alpine chough’s rounded out the Zugspitze summit experience, the Eibsee cable car taking us back down the mountain nice and quickly .

I did the 8km walk around Eibsee Lake, which looked like it was the inspiration for many calendars and chocolate boxes and biscuit tins: snow covered rocky mountains, emerald green lake full of fish, lush green alpine forests, one snake and the odd naked Bavarian girl skinny dipping in the lake.

Down off the mountain it was a much warmer 29 degrees, so I cooled off with an ice cream and a 1/2 litre beer before starting the bus / train journey back.

Did somebody say it was dinner time?  The grilled pike-perch, was delish.  I thought I should maybe kerb my beer intake a bit, so went a ½ litre radler, and finished off the evening with apple strudel (which was much better than last nights) and a latte macchiato.  I’m kind of liking the dirndl that the waitresses wear too, very cute but Michelle said she wouldn’t wear one.

Want more Zugspitz and Eibsee photos?