Meanders in Mittenwald

Days like the one I spent in Mittenwald don't occur too often. I don't know whether the stars were aligned because it was daylight (joke), but the weather could not have been better for a couple of Mittenwald hikes. The temperature hovered in the low 70's, a gentle breeze followed me most of the day, and I had just enough energy and courage to cross the steel walking bridge high over Leutaschklamm (gorge) (see photos below). Mittenwald, a fairy tale looking town about 20 minutes southeast of Garmisch, has plenty of "local color" to offer. Many commercial and residential buildings have frescoed facades, some of them passing up the usual religious themes in favor of themes depicting traditional mountain life (see photo). The town centers around the cathedral, itself attractively painted on the outside (see photo) and ornate, but not quite "over-the-top", on the inside. My goal for the day was not to tarry in town, but to check out some of the highly regarded wanderwegs in the area.

I initially rejected the gorge hike, based upon pictures of (1) the bridge crossing the gorge, and (2) the steel grated walkway embedded in the side of the cliffs about 200 feet above the raging river below. Despite my family's laughing at my beelines to the "i" (aka "tourist information center"), I got just the information I wanted at the Mittenwald "i", even though some of it was inaccurate! In order to get some idea of the height of the steel bridge above the gorge (and having learned from my litigation days that people do much better at estimating a height when they can compare it with another known object), I offered to the "i" attendant the bridge near Neuschwanstein (see blog entry "A Week to Relax") for comparison. The young woman assured me this bridge was not even half as high as the Neuschwanstein bridge and she estimated it to be no more than the height of the three-story house across the street from us. She also assured me that I could avoid the steel walkway embedded in the cliff simply by crossing the bridge and continuing along an alternate hiking path. So much for accurate reporting! When I arrived at the highest point before the bridge, I could see neither the promised gorge nor the promised waterfall. As the trail descended toward the bridge, the trail turned into the grated steel pathway I expected to avoid! My choice was to turn around and return disappointed or to march forward down the grated, "see through" steel steps leading to the bridge and the desired views (see photo). Relieved there was minimal "bounce" on the steel steps, but terror struck that I would have to look down to avoid missing a step, I held on as tightly as I could to the pipe railing and kept moving. I managed to get to the bridge, but then I was stuck with the duly and dually unpleasant choice of either walking back up the steps in the side of the cliff or to cross the bridge (see photo)! Considering these options, I chose the latter route solely because of the bridge's non-grated, sheet metal walking surface. I would have run across the bridge had I been able to do so without creating the undesired "bounce". The best I could do was wait until only a few hikers were on the bridge and not blocking my way. I took off at a rapid walk, only to be held up by a group of people who stopped in the middle of the bridge. The urgency in my "Entschuldigung!" ("excuse me") was unmistakable. Although I had to slow my stride, they moved just fast enough that I did not have to stop until I reached the other side of the gorge. So much for being cool and nonchalant! I probably held my breath the entire breadth! I suppose I could, via "photoshop", insert a picture of me standing on the bridge, but the reality is I was unwilling to take a microsecond longer than absolutely necessary to span the gorge. My photos from opposite sides of the gorge are proof enough of the feat of my feet, which included walking partway along the cliff wall (see photos). The bottom line is that what makes this hike spectacular is not the gorge, but the steel walkway and bridge!

I rewarded myself with lunch served at a mountain guesthouse (far superior to my alternative, home-prepared peanut butter and jam sandwich). Despite the fact that I arrived there at the busiest time of the day, I could still enjoy the view (see photo) while I waited to be served.

















Taking the "i" attendant's recommendation for another pleasant hike, I walked along a cascading stream to the Lautersee. My relative disappointment with the destination lake was far overshadowed by the beauty of the hike up to the lake and back (see photos). The more than I expected elevation change (definitely less than on the gorge hike) allowed for a waterfall along the mostly forested trail (see photos). As I approached the lake, I came upon a memorable sidelight--several chairs carved into abandoned tree trucks (see photo). The chairs were hardly comfortable, but they were throne-like nonetheless!

























































As I proceed through my "must see or do before we leave Munich" list, I am also enjoying museums and parks closer to our Munich home--the Pinakothek trio of museums (the Altes (with an especially large collection of Rubens paintings), the Neue (with a nice collection of 18th century works, but a disappointing collection of Impressionist paintings), and the Moderne (I can handle the Picassos and the Braques, but I don't understand the artistic significance of two parallel sets of pastel-colored strings, each set connected to the floor and ceiling in an otherwise empty white room)); Olympic Park (a still "in process" makeover of the space used for the 1972 Summer Olympics, but with a nice, grass-banked lake); and the Jewish Museum (a very interesting museum with thought provoking exhibits, despite keeping the number of "objects" to a minimum).