I'm sitting in the amazing Swiss mountain town of Lauterbrunnen, world reknowned for their cascading waterfalls. Our chauteau happens to look right out on one and they light it up at night, which is spectacular. I'm pretty proud of myself because today I went mountain-biking in the Swiss Alps, and it was so hardcore! We started off this morning (Me, Greg, Luke, & Trent) by renting bikes from reception and we didn't really know what our plan was but we decided to go with the flow. Our first stop wasTrummelbach, the only remaining glacier-fed waterfall inside of a mountain still visible by human eyes left within Europe. The waterfall went like a corkscrew through the black rock, made slick from centuries incredibly forceful water pumping it's way down into the river below. We climbed to the top and the water was loud, beating down with tons of power. After we left Trummelbach, we headed to Stechelberg, where we took our bikes up the mountainside via cablecar, first to Gimmelwald, then on to Murren. From there we road across the face of the Swiss Alps and made a possible wrong turn that ended up being phenomenal. At first our ride was easy and beautiful, but after a short time, we were forced to dismount and walk/carry instead, being as we were 6,000 ft in the air, and the width of the trail soon diminshed into merely a foot wide. Not to mention the rocks and drizzle - they don't provide too much traction. But it was all worth it, every second, because after the cows with their bells moved from being in our way, we soon entered into what looked like a Swiss rainforest. There were ferns, moss-covered rocks, huge mushrooms, and trees without visible tops. It looked like a scene from Lord of the Rings. We kept riding when we could, and then more walking, you get the pattern. We were gone for probably 4 hours, at least 2 or 3 of which was riding. But risking our lives in order to be able to see the snow-capped peaks in the distance, riding past lazy cows on the side of the path, meeting locals, flying down curvy gravel streets, and finding unimgainable landscapes and views made all of the danger worth it. I'm covered in mud, but beaming from ear to ear. I can say it was the most intense biking I've ever done, but hey - I rode a bike through the Swiss Alps! And I've got a picture of myself holding my bike over my head atop the mountain to prove it (will be my next facebook photo for sure, hehe)!
Tomorrow we're heading back into Germany, to St. Goar, in the Rhine River Valley. Basically I'll be sitting in a bus all day. From there, we go through Belgium and then on to my final destination of Amsterdam. I'm seriously not ready for this adventure to end. The way I'm seeing it is that I'll just be putting it on pause, because I don't want to think that this will be the only and last time I hike these mountains ... or see any of the cities, oceans, museums, cultures, people that I've seen. I'm ready for the tour to end though, seeing as 37 days is a long time to spend with the same people day in and day out. But there are a fabulous few who I know I'll be in touch with forever because we've experienced some of the most unique things together and that will build a bond like none other. I'm looking forward to winding down a little, but it's official - I've got the travel bug ... and once you've got it, I'm afraid there is no cure.
Looking forward to seeing and talking to you all when I get back!
Lots of love,
Cor
