K's July Adventures, 2012

AUSTRIA/SWITZ  MOUNTAIN MADNESS
K’s KRAZY TRAVEL BLOGS 2012

June  15th Sitting in theTrain En Route to Zurich.. thinking of YOU



Interesting Escapades in the  Mountains!
Usually I do not feel the desire to write a little BLOG..since I come to Switz. (this spot) every year and pretty much do similar routes and climbs (with some changes).
I usually get the Mountain hostel Dorm room all to myself but not this time…had to
share…He’s Nathan a young north Carolina boy..who ended up being a great hiking
partner for one hike. Man the Mountain hostel sure know how to put on a good Breakfast spread!  Part of the big reason I keep coming back there.  The Big Blue building at the base of the mountain.

Some  Highlights

Reuniting with my sweet Bavarian Blonde friend Simone for one day of insane ness! Our first and last training together before our 200km mountain race in 3 weeks Swiss Iron Trail-…the thought of it…is kind of funny as I have no idea what to
expect…how it will be done.  Would we actually need to sleep during it etc… running through mountain trails through  two nights will be interesting….I am audaciously curious I found something that stopped me dead in my tracks on the streets of Grindelwald (near Interlaken)…yes my friends..there in the window of this clothing store..lay wooden like Disco Balls..all made of wood!  I had to find out where to get one…as I was not leaving this town without one..and get it I DID!  No sparkles on this baby though!  Yes I have been lugging this damn thing around…when you are obsessed with something..those things don’t seem to matter…

The Baren Trek (translated Bear Trek) – 130km winding through the Berner Oberland Alps – I had a desire to do a chunk of it..despite the bad weather coming this way.

Part of the trek was to hike up to a HUT at 2200m and stay the night…I had walked by this hut many times but have never stayed.  I arrive there around 8pm at night..sopping wet from a day of hiking in the rain.  What an awesome place with a Loft bunkhouse for us.  The owner Claudio’s brother lives in Listowel and has a huge sheep farm – both owners of the Hut have been to Kitchener…Huhhhhh?  Now I have a reason to visit the action packed town of Listowel!

As I woke up from a magical night sleep in the Bunk Loft….I was called to the window by my new Colorado friends..We were completely immersed in SNOW…well it looked gorgeous…I knew there is NO GOING on the route I was to do…I wolfed down a good ol swiss breakie..and made my way back down the mountain…wearing I think every piece of clothing I had..snow, rain..mud… Have been having great sleeps (with crazy dreams!)…only waking up once…but feeling fatigued and wiped everyday..Espressos are looking good ALL THE TIME…I know I had to be patient with adjusting and training at higher altitudes but its’ a bit of a KICK IN THE
PANTS! THE MAD COW – I asked for Adventure!  Be careful when you ask for adventure…you just might get it!  In the little swiss town of ADELBODEN, I leave my hostel like Hotel early in the morn to head up and over the mountain to the next village called LENK.  Wish I would have made a huge DOGGIE BAG at that breakfast buffet!  I must have changed 10x on this hike…coat
on then off …HARD rain, light rain and then SNOW, wind..you name it!  Towards
the top I lost the trail and had to make my own…I was sopping wet, cold and
hungry…after I inhaled a salad and more…I blazed down the mountain and into the
line of fire of a few moody cows or bulls.  One was heavily staring at me as I
ran down the muddy trail towards him.  So I stopped and walked..but he was not
letting me get by…in fact he charged right at me..I decided to stay put (since
this happened to me before..everyone told me to stay there and show them who’s
boss).  Well let’s just say that did not work and I he ran towards me and I was
head butted by this animal..Aggressive was he!! I was not horned but those sharp
things were coming close…he did it again and again and then I ran..he chased
me…and if you can believe it..we were going back and forth behind a tree (like
if you were playing tag with someone…he would not stop pursuing…so I ran hard
back up the trail…came back down a bit to try again.  He was looking up at me
and Growling (do Cows Growl???..well this one did)…let me say there were about 5
others with him.  So I started to talk to him and tell him how nice I was and
that I just want by…Another plan, I had to quietly go off to the side as close
to barbed wire fence as possible and get by them….all of a sudden..I heard the
cow bells dangle!  I never imagined that sound to frighten me…as it always was a
peaceful sound at sunrise in the Alps as you awaken…These guys…all of them came
bounding toward me as I scaled the barb wire fence…they came right up to it,
backed off and came right back…I thought they were going to jump it and come
after me…they were all pretty pissed at me!

Well I did make it down…rain rain rain…and figured out it may have been my ORANGE bag cover… - maybe to them that was like red and they were charging me like in the  ring!

Decided to head back to Austria (ahhhhhhhh) - and had a good plow up the Mountain and down again before my train left….First sunny day in awhile and holy cow…the difference is incredible…

My first 10 Days
OK hugs and kisses and yodels to you all!
Love Karrie


Non Stop Mountain Training and LOVIN IT on the BIG 4!

June 15- 21st This was a GO NUTS time to train train train and climb climb climb….at the same time scoping for good people and spots to take my group to.
There is nothing like the feeling of feeling exhausted and super fit from the Mountains!  Mixed in with that is a ton of delectable bread, and double espresso Macchiatos and the occasional Knodel!  Which is balanced out with a good night dose of Salad – they have the best mixed salad here…I cannot go a day without that…Love itTHE BIG 4
are the main Peaks I take my Groups to and the ones I train on and climb the
most.
I never get sick of the BIG 4!  Seegrube, Reiter
Spitze, Griesskogel, Stubai Valley
I invite you all to come
over and allow me to escort you up these mountains….
July
1st - CLASSIC TIROLEAN COMPLETE!
Well the first 10 Day
Adventure of the summer has finished and was a most awesome trip!  My two girls
who became Tirolean Madls very soon, were pretty cool to play
with.
We had a taste of everything on this trip including
many peaks reached (always had to do a Handstand at the top), challenging trails
travelled, crazy downhill running,  dancefloors danced on (we did SILENT
DISCO!), beautiful breakfast indulgences, schnapps tasting,  Espresso stops,
Mountain Hut stay, Farmhouse stay, Motorcycle ride up the mountain, Mountain
Yoga and Lumberjack Bootcamp, Paragliding…YOU NAME IT!
Off
the girls went to Vienna and Venice….for a little more relaxing
travel…
Will miss those Madls!
Can’t
wait for my next 10 Day Group starting July 12th   OH the BEST IS YET TO COME
BABY!
Just ordered my GOPRO head camera too….Really high
tech now!



July 4th  - SWISS
IRON TRAIL!!! (race from July6-8th)

Check out cool
videos on http://www.irontrail.ch/



Hmmm I wonder why, the harder something looks, the more I
want to do it. It is hard to fathom that it is here…this crazy good sounding
Mountain Extreme Race I registered for a while back. I sit here in my favourite
Innsbruck Café – Segafredo – Can’t resist those double espressos!  on my 2nd
full rest day (they are hard to do!) It is a day and a half away…and it is crazy
to think it will be all done on Sunday.  A huge part of me is excited, another
part feels so tired, another part says Whooooooaaaaa.  I just want to DIVE IN
and experience it and FINISH IT.
202km, 15,000m of
elevation, climbing and running through the night…fending for ourselves with
maps etc….Soooooooo coooool….Can’t wait to report about it on Monday…I will
probably take that day off…


To the most awesome
adventure I go!

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