July in the Swiss Alps

It's 4 o'clock in Murren and it has been raining all day. We started this trip at 9 am thinking that the weather was clearing. After a two hour trip up cable cars and cogwheel trains we reached the trail head for Kleine Scheidegg. It was gray, cold and drizzly but beautiful. The gray sky emphasized the true green of the valley and the white glaciers spreading down from the Eiger. Wildflowers of yellow, blue, and white bloom in profusion. Down in the valleys small "hay huts" blend in with the ancient feeling of the empty mountains. When the air is just right you can hear the distant ringing of cow bells. Even though jagged peaks surrounded me, I felt as if I was on top of the world.

Not too long after we started a relatively easy hike it started to sprinkle. Towards the end it began to rain in earnest. We carried an umbrella (I have never hiked with an umbrella before, not the easiest thing to do) but walked in light wind breakers and mesh running shoes. Cold! By the time we arrived at Kleine Scheidegg we were soaked: shoes, socks, pants, the works. We took another cog train down to a another town and got off to eat lunch. More yummy food including rosti (hash browned potatoes covered with swiss cheese and in this case ham, mushrooms and onions)the national dish of the Swiss. Desert was apple strudel in warm vanilla custard with ice cream and whipped cream. Plenty of calories for several walks!

Another wet walk to the cable station and a transfer to the cogwheel train to get back up to Murren. By this time it was pouring so the walk to Hotel Jungfrau was even colder. My jeans are now hanging on the towel heater in the bathroom and my wet shoes are sitting upside down on a rack above the heater.

I wouldn't have missed the walk, the views were spectacular. We could see the Eiger, the Monk, and the Jungfrau, the highest peaks in the area. We saw several black salamanders enjoying the rain. But now my only pair of closed toed shoes are soaked as are my jeans and jacket. I packed what Rick Steves advised and so did not pack enough pairs of shoes. Everyone coming into the Alps should be advised to bring some hiking shoes if not for the rain then for the rocky trails.

Coming back on the train we all agreed we felt like the end of a day of skiing, tired, wet, and cold. Wonderful!