Day 4 SWITZERLAND TRIP: Golden pass, Lauterbrunnen-Winteregg-Murren

Sep 1, 2014:

Golden pass trip—(Vevey-Montreux-Zweilutchinnen-Spiez-Interlaken ost-Lauterbrunnen); Checkin, Grutschalp cable, Trek to Winteregg-Murren

We had hotel booked at Lauterbrunnen from Sep 1-5, but we could check in late in the day as well...could take any train we wanted to reach there, no specific deadlines.

 Things missed in Vevey area:

We had not been to Les Diablerets/Glacier 3000 which is the logical glacier experience from this area. It’s much nearer to Montreux but we went all the way to Zermatt/Klein Matterhorn for our glacier excursion…no regrets about that decision as we had glorious weather and great time there.

We had not seen the Charlie Chaplin statue and the old town area in Vevey and we wanted to see Chillon castle from the boat. Also we had not walked thru the vineyards though we had seen plenty thru train windows. We were wondering if we can stay back on Sep 1^st, do these things and then go onward to Lauterbrunnen taking the fast route (duration a little over 2 hours vs 4 ½ hours on the scenic golden pass route)

Golden Pass route from Montreux to Luzern; Can also see how close Les Diablerets is to Vevey relative to Zermatt

But we wanted to go thru the golden pass route as it's reputed to be scenic. There are many transfers... Vevey-Montreux-Zweilutchinnen-Spiez-Interlaken ost-Lauterbrunnen. We wanted to be fresh for appreciating the scenery. So we checked out early morning and were on our way.

( In retrospect, can't conclusively say whether our choice was right...missing out some local Vevey sights in favor of the scenic ride!)

Le Charlot hotel room in Vevey

Sun rise on Lac Leman (Lake Geneva) as we walk to the train station

All Legs of the journey except one were sparsely crowded... coach to ourselves here... 

Lovely scenic journey. 

Vineyards through the train window

Scenery through the train window

All transfers were easy. Many were from the platform just opposite to the one our previous train pulled into and the next train was already standing. A couple of places, we took the ramp to reach another platform for the transfer but that was easy too. As it was an early morning journey, trains were almost empty. We switched sides depending on interesting scenes on both the sides. 

Only the train to Interlaken ost was crowded. There are 3 small coaches with glass partitions with 6 seats inside in the 2^nd class. There are also the regular seating cabins. The regular cabin was full. In one small coach, a young Chinese couple was sitting with their bags on all the seats, studiously looking away when we knocked, opened the glass door and entered. I told them, please remove your bags from the seats; we would like to sit here. They obliged and we had a short, comfortable journey to Interlaken ost. Got into the coach marked lauterbrunnen in the connecting train---some coaches go to Grindelwald and reached our destination,

A slight drizzle welcomed us to the lovely valley nestled among mountains. There were several waterfalls flowing from the cliffs.

Lauterbrunnen area has 72 waterfalls…  Lauter=many/clear/pure;  brunnen=spring (My translation of German—apologies if there are mistakes). We walked 600m to our hotel Staubbach, the oldest hotel in the valley almost 200years old, and family run. We had booked a room with the view of the Staubbach falls. Room was not ready, we left our bags at their reception, freshened up and started our day.

Hotel Staubbach, our hotel in Lauterbrunnen

Staubbach waterfalls in front of our hotel

Staubbach is the 2^nd highest waterfall in Switzerland, falling from 1000ft. because of the sheer cliffs, it looks like a white powder swirling around in the wind. Staub=powder, bach=brook. It is a lovely sight and on our last day we trekked up behind the falls for a better look. Anyways more of that later.

Interesting shop sign... featuring the famous peaks Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau as well as the Swiss knife

Walking through the valley

We went to the cablecar station just opposite the railway station , bought our tickets in the machine to Grutschalp. Boarded the cablecar and reached Grutschalp.

View from the cable car

Train to Murren was standing but we decided to trek

Postbus winding its way below in the valley

Waterfall/stream

Winteregg restaurant with cowbells

We hiked to Winteregg and then onward to Murren. Quite pleasant. the path was more of a well paved walking trail one would find in city parks… not any rough mountain trail… so walk will be a better word than hike. (A word about the treks we did in BO area—they are all on paved roads—not the rough “trek” we’ll expect up mountains. The Swiss have really put in huge effort in making the mountains negotiable with least difficulty. We had had a 17 day holiday in 2013 in Argentina trekking some 12 km one way on the Andes on some days and we were so pleasantly surprised at the smooth roads we encountered on the Alps in the places we trekked!!)

Waterfall

Reached Murren train station

The only extra sights we saw on our hike were the close encounters with the streams/water falls and the flowers (these are there in the villages too)… the train ride up the hill is slow and they too enjoy the same views from the comfort of their seats. We had been up at Rochers –de-Naye, enjoying different varieties of wild flowers, marmots etc.

IMHO, the slow mountain trains afford 80% of the viewing pleasure we get on walks/treks to the same destination in these areas we visited.  I decided to save my energy for treks to Lake Bachalpsee and the like which can only by reached by trek, not train and do limited walks hence onward

Murren is a lovely village and we walked around sitting in scenic spots and enjoying the several viewing platforms! 

Agertenbach waterfall in Murren

The massive Eiger

Hotel Eiger faces peak Eiger... duh!

Had our picnic meal under the pine tree facing Eiger

Our picnic under the pine tree facing Eiger

Commemorative Plaque under the pine treein  Mürren for Sir Lunn (1888-1974);He established downhill slalom championship in 1931 (slalom: an alpine skiing/ snowboarding discipline, involving skiing between poles (gates) spaced  close together)

Walking through the village of Murren

Water fountain... handy as usual

Marmot water fountain...

Alone on the viewing platform facing Eiger

Trickling waterfalls down mountain sides and streams in the valley below

All alone in serene surroundings... houses look boarded up and closed...

Shops were closed and streets were deserted

Interesting cow planter for flowers... in Swiss flag color and motif

After enjoying the beauty of the village with hardly a soul around, we took the train back to Lauterbrunnen. That was the end of our Day 4 in lovely Switzerland.

http://adventuretrav.blogspot.com/2016/04/day-5-swiss-trip-jungfraujoch.html
covers our trip to Jungfraujoch.