Bernese Oberland (soggy, but beautiful)

I had been in Switzerland for four full days, and still hadn’t been to the alps. This had to change. On Sunday, I headed for the snow-capped peaks in all their glory. Here are a few things I learned:

1) Hiking above the tree line to the edge of glaciers in the alps should probably be planned more than one hour before going to bed the night before.
2) When one finds weather reports predicting rain, one should not simply keep looking at different websites until one finds one that promises at least partial sunshine.
3) When gearing up for a hike, (and this, again, can only be done through advanced planning) it is advisable to purchase some water barrier (i.e. jacket) before landing in Grindelwald, possibly the most expensive town on earth. (But I do have a really cool, breathable, and definitely water proof jacket now. I'm not sure it was worth a month of groceries...)
4) When hiking up a steep incline for three or four continuous hours, one should not try to keep up with a tall Polish guy, whose stride is twice as long as one's, even if he is an economics teacher and can hold an interesting conversation in excellent English (or German). 5) When one arrives at the peak of the planned hike, one might want to consider a bit more carefully if one should branch off the well-marked path to go to the edge of a glacier, even if it is the Eiger's glacier. One should also consider that what appears to be "just over the next hill" might actually involve a climb with an additional 1,000 altitute gain.
6) Short cuts usually increase the total distance traveled and time spent and effort exerted.
7) The rationale "if a cow can come up this trail, surely I can go down it" might be poor justification for refusing to backtrack when one loses the well-marked Swiss hiking trail and instead attempts an impossible trail at the very brink of the edge of a 30 foot drop-off. Half-way down, one might find goat droppings, suggesting that large cows never attempt this “short cut.” One might watch a rescue helicopter zoom away to someone else, and wonder if it will soon have a reason to return. One might realize that due to altitude and fatigue, one's calves and quads are going through involuntary tremors, while one’s non-trail-running shoes are but an inch from the drop off. One might cling to a tree branch, and one might feel frightened.
8) A large chunk of brie cheese is not the best hiking food, even if one thinks one packaged it well, and even if it was the only thing one had in the fridge.
9) Taking one's journal on a hike because "hey, I might be inspired," is not advisable when your pack is not water tight.
10) The Swiss Alps are absolutely the most gorgeous mountains I have ever seen in my life.

Trek: Grindelwald – Kleine Scheidegg – Eigergletscher – Wengen

The skies opened about seventeen seconds after I started walking and the rain kept up until I was nearly at the top of the pass. Dragging my soggy self and my soggy backpack to the top made me appreciate the views all the more. The mountains were only cloud-free for about 30 minutes all day, and these happened to take place exactly as I was eating lunch with a full view of the Jungfrau, Mönch, and Eiger. I wish the pictures could do this justice...




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