Switzerland Craze, 2012

SWITZERLAND at it’s BEST!
4 Days of rambling in the Alps!  The HIGHLIGHTs

Inferno Halb Marathon – Always a bugger of a race! Being a half marathon and around 2100m of climbing up…but I LOVE IT!  It was a super HOT day but I love that too.  Felt crappy for first
10km..then I hunkered down and said Karrie c’mon..you have been doing this for a long time…Focus in and run hard…and it worked…the second half felt much stronger and managed to shave off 4 min from last years time.

The next day…MAGICAL CLIMB to BLUEMSIALPHUTTE – 81/2 hours of climbing..

Loved this climb as  I started later in the day…weather a DREAM…stopped by the Rotstockhutte to visit with friends Cornelia and Claudio…topped up with soup and bread and then I was off…another 5 hours to go at least.  So here I was just about to climb the toughest part of the trek starting at 8pm…all steep baby!  But wow not a cloud in the sky and WARM…this was truly AWESOME!  Had passed a couple people setting up their mattresses to lay out in the open under the stars for the night!  After 90min of hard breathing and fatigued legs ..it was getting dark and I did not see the HUT…It sat at 2800m…I had to be getting there soon!  I passed by many animals who just stared at me..wondering what the heck I was doing up here at this time!  And then…aaaahhhhh THE STAIRS…a crazy amount of super steep stairs, high up on the mountain…I had to be close….and I was….It was now dark, I was done and the light of the HUT sparkled in the night just ahead.  I let out a big AHHHHHHHHHH  Yes!  The place was full as I walked in getting astonished looks from people consumed in consversation, cards and a few drinks.  I got a WELCOME HOT TEA…stirred up my shake for dinner (as they were not serving it anymore) and soon to bed.  I had sworn that I would never sleep on a huge shared mattress room again..with people lined up liked sardines…but somehow I was in that situation again.  I don’t like the breathing in your face thing too much…but this time…it was OK…out of 10 people in our room…no one snored (ASTONISHING!).  I  didn’t get heavy breathing in my face..and a great deep sleep I had.  I excitedly got out of bed (couldn’t wait for breakie) waking up at 2800m, I wanted to walk outside to absolute quiet, warm air and a pinky haze over the mountain range …was sooo cool.

The descent down to Ochinensee – was quick as I hopped along from rock to rock, excited to get into that lake and have my shower I missed yesterday.  This lake was to die for, soooo blue and clear…I couldn’t resist a little SKINNY DIP in this ….VOILA!  An hour later I was in Kandersteg sitting at a café, sipping my double espresso macchiato, waiting for the train.  I had the pleasure of meeting this super
cool, gorgeous Hippy like 57 year old woman by the train named NIMISHA who just
loved my orange shoes…a short time together, deep conversation…good connection,
these are the sweet little gifts in life.  OK I was ready to get back to
Innsbruck ( I miss it)…back to Lauterbrunnen, pick up my stuff and off I went. 
LOVE LONG TRAIN TRAVEL…

So on my List of stuff, I got a few ticked off…stay in the SWISS SAC Hut…very high up..,, skinny dip in a glacier lake and the next thing is stay overnight at the
Sheep’s Hut high above Rietz with Benno

Winding down for TRANSALPINE

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