The Trek to Obersteinberg

On Tuesday, June 15th, our planned trek called for a 17 km. walk from Wengen down into the valley at Lauterbrunnen, and then up the valley a long ways until we would find a trail that ascended steeply out of the canyon 3000’ up to a hotel with no electricity at Obersteinberg. Well, since the weather again was threatening, we decided to shorten the trip as much as possible by taking the train from Wengen to Lauterbrunnen, and then a bus to Stechelberg before setting off on foot. The climb out of the canyon was exhausting, but the rain never came and the cloud-cover made hiking more pleasant. A 3-hour hike turned into a tad more than 4 hours, but we did make it! The accommodations were rustic (no showers or hot water or electricity, & the toilet down the hall [but the kitchen was kind enough to bring us a pitcher of hot water so we could wash-up!]), but dinner was delicious, and heavy down comforters kept us warm all night.

As the pictures will show, we did catch occasional views of some peaks, were impressed with spectacular waterfalls, and did spend some time outside in the afternoon sitting on a bench watching the fog drift in and out over the peaks. (Note my picture of Nancy marveling at the view when literally nothing could be seen but fog!) – rw