It’s our final morning in Mürren, this great Alpine cliff-perched car-free village.
Speaking of car-free I had this funny sensation as I awoke and stepped out onto our balcony, looking down about 1200 feet into the valley floor below and the clump of buildings called Stechelberg. I briefly thought I heard traffic in the quiet morning stillness. I bet you know the feeling of hearing that gentle relentless hum in the background: constant, indistinct, slightly muffled.
Then I realized what it was: falling water. Lots of it. The valley’s name, Lauterbrunnen, means “loud streams”, as in streams falling straight down over a thousand feet to the valley floor. That’s the sound I was hearing, not traffic but traffic-free. The sound of nature, the first day of creation.
It’s been lovely here.
We had a good day yesterday in Mürren as we broke into various smaller groupings. Some actually went on a trail that led to one of those waterfalls and they took enough clothing to still be discrete and brave enough to stand under glacier-cold rivers. It’s a joy-filled exuberant video clip they sent. Others walked through the forest to the nearby Winteregg Station where they enjoyed a coffee before heading back; or up a path to an alpine meadow, or others down to yet another cliff-perched village and still another group walked up, up to an alpine guesthouse/hostel (Rotstockhütte; look it up!) before making their way down.
We gathered for our evening meal at the Hotel Alpina and once more the sound of laughter and conversation drowned out the sound of falling streams of water.
It’s been magical here. After breakfast, however, we’ll pack up and shift. Where to? Stay tuned!
– Len Friesen, Alpine Adventure Tour
