We came. We saw. We conquered.

Well, we came to Bavaria to hike, and hike we did! Tuesday was a picture-perfect day. Bright sunshine and nice, warm temperatures. They don't get any better.

Lake Konigssee

We started out Tuesday morning with a boat ride on Lake Konigssee (the King's lake). Konigssee is Germany's cleanest lake, thanks in large part to the electric motors on all of the tour boats that run between the village of Konigssee and the lovely church that sits on the bank of the narrow lake nestled in the mountains. The water is a beautiful jade color, and you can nearly see all the way to the bottom (about 200 meters). About half-way to the church, the boat stopped and the tour guide got out his trumpet and played a tune across the lake so we could hear the echo through the mountains. Beautiful!!

The Jennerbahn lift - this was REALLY high!

After a delicious lunch of sausage back in Konigssee, we hopped on the Jennerbahn lift that took us to the top of the mountain - 1800 meters up!! Let's just say it was a VERY steep ride up the lift, and we were VERY, VERY high up. The views were incredibly beautiful. I'll attach a few pictures, but they just don't do justice to the view.

Then we started our hike down the hill. Don't ever assume that a downhill hike is a piece of cake. In some places it was really steep, and very hard on the knees and feet! Something that absolutely amazes me here is the number of older bikers and hikers . . . people well into their 70s and 80s, hiking in the mountains and biking across the country!! I'm totally amazed and impressed. I hope I can still do this at that age.

Along the hike down the mountain, we went from rocky slopes to thick forests to grassy meadows. My favorite part was the tinkling of the cow bells as they wandered the slopes of the mountain. Out in the middle of nowhere you can hear the beautiful alpine bells clinging around the cow's neck. I named them "Frau Cow." :-) So, four hours after we started from the top, we were back in civilization. It was a great hike, but we were beat!

For dinner, we found a nice restaurant right on Lake Konigssee and I enjoyed a great meal of potato pancakes with applesauce. Delicious!!

Here are a few pics from today:





My lunch - check out the fancy "weiner art"



Can't get over the beautiful flowers everywhere

Cows wandering in the alpine meadows - very fun!

At the top of Mount Jenner, overlooking Konigssee . . . it was a VERY long hike down!

Ski lodge near the top of Jenner

Lake Konigssee from the top of Jenner. Breathtaking!

Saw several hang-gliders. Very cool!