It all started with a story that Kris saw on the Today show on U.S. television. The feature was promoting the opening of the "world's highest suspension bridge" in Switzerland. When I spoke to Kris about her upcoming trip to see us, she expressed her desire to see the bridge. I did some research and pinpointed the location of this "cliff walk" on Mt Titlis, which is the highest peak in the Uri Alps in central Switzerland. I made reservations in the nearby village of Engelberg and was happy when Dave decided he wanted to join us as well.
It took several hours to drive to Engelberg from Como on the motorway through the Alps of southern Switzerland. Engelberg is a scenic ski town in the winter but in the summer, it is filled with colorful flowers beckoning tourists seeking adventure and mountain air. The next morning started off with low clouds and sporadic rain so we decided to hop on one of the bright red trains for the hour ride to the Lucerne. Despite the gloomy weather, we had a great time exploring this beautiful lakeside city surrounded by snow-capped mountains. The old wooden covered bridges crossing the river Reuss are the oldest in Europe; the Chapel Bridge was originally built in 1333. Flowers cascade all along the edges which brightened up the gray day. We all were especially moved by the Lion Monument in a city park which commemorates the death of hundreds of Swiss guards during the French Revolution.
The stormy day moved though which set the stage for beautiful weather the next day on the mountain. The day dawned sparkling clear as we rode the cable car system up Mt. Titlis, the mountain name which made us all giggle. The last of the three cable cars was a revolving gondola that rose above a glacier to a height of 3,238 meters or 10,623 ft. At the top, we had a glorious and unobstructed view of the surrounding mountains. We walked through a tunnel carved through the ice to the actual bridge which allowed us to walk on a chain link type structure for about 100 meters above ice and snow 500 meters below. We had much in common with all the Asian tourists who seemed to enjoy the photo opportunities in the snow as much as we did.
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| Photo by Dave Hoopes |
Our hotel host recommended the "sunny side" of Engelberg when we requested a suggestion for hiking. After descending Mt. Titlis, we went to the other side of the valley and rode the Brunni cable car up into the high alpine meadow land. We had fun sharing the trails with cows and seeing parasailors floating in the air currents above us. Somehow we decided to walk through a "kitzelpfad" (literal translation - titillation trail), a wellness trail for one's feet. This involved removing our socks and shoes, walking through sequential boxes of various textured materials such as moss, pebbles, wet peat moss, mud, and wooden slats interspersed with walks through the edge of the very cold mountain lake water. We aren't sure if our feet benefited from this unusual experience but we know it was one of the funniest and bizarre scenes in our trip. The beautiful mountain day ended with us enjoying a late lunch on the terrace of the Brunnihutte restaurant high on the mountain. Breathe in, breathe out - getting high on nature in Switzerland feels great.
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