Short Trips

In between the all-day hikes we often take short trips--either to closer areas by bike or to more distant sites by car when our friends, Eric and Sylvia, want to take us there. Some of the more interesting places we've been are described below.

We returned to Hollentalklamm (June 27 post) with Sylvia, who had never been. This time after the 1 hour hike to the gorge and 40 minutes to walk up it, we hiked beyond the gorge for an additional 45 minutes to reach the Hutte (hiking "hut"  with beds and food for those headed to Zugspitze) where we enjoyed coffee and Apfelstrudel (apple strudel).

Oberammergau is a little village famous for its Passion Play that is performed every 10 years--and has been since 1644! It is being performed this year and will not be repeated again until 2020. Click on the links for an interesting history of the play.

We looked in several unique shops in Oberarmmergau (especially when the rain bursts came!), including a Kathe Wohlfahrt store, in which you can buy famous Christmas carvings, ornaments, etc. year-round. Sylvia says that Christmas in this area is breathtakingly beautiful with the snow and unique Bavarian decorations.

In the nearby village of Ettal is a church, established in 1330. There is also a Benedictine abbey (monastery) and brewery for Ettaler beer. Bob was disappointed to miss the tour--the only way to get into the brewery.

While there are ever-present McDonald's or Burger Kings available (We refuse to go!) the closest we can come to German fast food (insulting concept to Germans) is the Doner kebab. It's actually Turkish and the video link from Berlin will explain it.

Late one day we hiked up to a Hutte en route to Kramerspitze (Mt. Kramer), our next big hike. The hutte was closed but we did get great views of Garmish-Partenkirchen below.

There are innumerable little villages around such as Krun and Gerold, each with unique pathways and views. And wherever we go there are Germans of all ages hiking, biking, and swimming. Exercise is so supported here it's actually difficult not to get out and go!

Wherever we go in Germany we are reminded of how old the country is. Werdenfelsruine are the ruins of a castle (Werdenfels), dating back to 1219--in "business" long before Columbus's famous voyage. 

I thought that the horses and people must have been quite a bit smaller to get through the doorways but Eric (the historian!) said that the walls settle and the ground rises over the centuries so the doorways were actually higher back then. 

We are at about the same latitude as Minnesota which is  very close to the North Pole (family joke) so it stays light much later here in Garmisch-Partenkirchen; dusk is around 9:30 pm. (North of the Arctic Circle, "land of the midnight sun," the sun never sets at this time of year.)

After a busy day of work or hiking (both taken very seriously here!) many Germans relax at any one of multiple Biergarten (beer gardens) in every little village (this was Farchant) for a late dinner and/or beer with friends... OR vanilla ice cream with fresh hot raspberry sauce and whipped cream! :-)