murren
Day 7 - Sunday - June 5, 2016
Today we are leaving beautiful Lugano and heading to the Berner Oberland region. Along the way, we'll visit the mountain village of Zermatt to see if we can get a glimpse of the famous Matterhorn.
Zermatt is a touristy town and the main attraction is the Matterhorn. The town has a population of 5,600 people who mainly earn their living by serving tourists. Although Zermatt looks Swiss, many of the workers come from other parts of Europe, particularly Portugal. Zermatt's elevation is 5,265 feet and lies at the end of the Nikolaital Valley along the Matter Vispa River.
Our bus took us to Visp where we caught the train to Zermatt. When we arrived in Zermatt, it was mostly cloudy but we thought we had a chance to get a peek at the famous Matterhorn peak. We rushed to the other end of town for the best views but discovered the Matterhorn was covered with clouds. It looked like it could clear so we stayed awhile and enjoyed the fresh Swiss mountain air. It didn't clear and we headed back into town for lunch. After lunch, we had five minutes to get back and catch the train. We took a quick little side trip down to the river and to our surprise we could see most of the Matterhorn and were able to get a nice picture before running to catch the train. Here are a few pictures of our stop in Zermatt.
We left Zermatt and made the return trip by train and then boarded the bus and headed to Berner Oberland. Along the way, our bus was loaded on a train (with the tour members on the bus) for a trip through the mountains. This was a surprise to us and a really interesting experience. The bus barely fit on the train with about one inch to spare on each side. This was apparently the quickest way to get across the mountain to reach the Berner Oberland region. A picture below shows cars being loaded unto the train.
We arrived in the Lauterbrunnen Valley of the Berner Oberland region later in the day. The only way to our Hotel Alpenruh in Murren was to take the cable car from the valley to the top. Murren sits on the edge of a cliff 2,000 feet above the Lauterbrunnen Valley. We settled in to the Hotel Alpenruh before enjoying dinner as a group.
Day 8 - Monday - June 6, 2016
Murren sits on a cliff 2,000 feet above the Lauterbrunnen Valley. It dates back to 1384. It has a population of 400 permanent residents with a holiday population of 4,000. Murren is traffic free and you can walk from one end to the other in 10 minutes.
We woke up to clear skies and beautiful scenery. What a wonderful day! Our plan was to take the cable car to Schilthorn early in the morning for some beautiful views and breakfast. Then return to Murren for some hiking.
On many days, the Schilthorn clouds over later in the morning or day. That's why we took the early cable car to the top of Schilthorn and the Piz Gloria cable-car station. The summit of Schilthorn is about 10,000 feet. The views from the top were breathtaking, but to be honest, I think the views of the mountain from below are even better than from the Schilthorn. We took in the panoramic views before heading inside for breakfast. The breakfast seating area is solar-powered and rotates 360 degrees for a view in all directions. Below are some scenic pictures from the top of Schilthorn.
The Piz Gloria station also has a James Bond exhibit which is very good. The Schilthorn was a major location for the James Bond movie, "On Her Majesty's Secret Service". The restrooms in the Piz Gloria station also have a James Bond theme. Check it out below!
After returning to Murren from the Schilthorn, we had a day of hiking planned. Our Assistant Guide Fabian Rueger took a group of people and hiked to Gimmelwald. Most of the remaining group headed out with our Guide Reid Coen for a hike from Allmenhubel funicular to Grutschalp. The Allmenhubel funicular was closed, however, so we took the train from Murren to Grutschalp. This made the hike harder since it was mostly uphill from Grutschalp to Murren. But our views of the Eiger, Monch, and Jungfrau peaks were beautiful and it was an excellent hike. This is probably the most beautiful place I have ever been! See pictures below.
Tomorrow we head for Lausanne.