Last September, my wife and I went on a hiking tour of some of the trails we used to do when we lived in Austria 36 years ago.
We lived in Thaur , a village outside Innsbruck and there was this mountain trail nearby which led up to a small chapel which we had been up only once.
The trail is narrowly sandwiched between two mountain ranges with contrasting terrain on the slopes . Tress , bushes, and grassy areas are on the mountain range where the trail runs alongside a fast-flowing clear river. The opposite mountain range is rocky with huge boulders, loose rock, and sand and is avalanche prone.
There is a tarmac service road for trucks servicing a water reservoir mid-way up and for clearing avalanches when it happens.
September brings changeable weather of sun and rain. It was drizzling slightly when we started but the trail has gentle gradients with lots of flat terrain. Some hikers chose to walk on the road, but we found this to be quite steep when we came down this way.
After about two hours in the cold and wet, we came to a meadow fenced up with goats which greeted us by lifting their heads up from their grazing and bleated a welcome to the chapel and a restaurant which was new.
We stepped into the 15th century chapel which had been recently restored and wondered at its simplicity. Outside hung strings of Buddhist prayer flags, courtesy of the restaurant’s Nepalese cook, religious harmony and reverence in striking nature.
A log fire was roaring in the dining room of the restaurant. We hung our wet jackets to dry and ate Buchteln ,a sweet yeasts roll with raspberry filling drenched in warm vanilla sauce and drank hot chocolate. A cozy and blissful moment savored for remembrance.
As we walked down the road, there were avalanche warning signs and historical facts about salt mining up in the mountain which were new to us.
The next day was surprisingly bright and sunny for an autumn day, and we went to Achensee ( Achen Lake) , a huge 10km long and 1km wide lake wedged between two mountain ranges.
On our wedding day , we had a celebration lunch there but somehow neither of us could remember the name of the restaurant. We used to visit the small villages dotted around the lake during winter and did short hikes but this time we wanted to hike more.
From Innsbruck, we took a train and then a winding but scenic bus ride up to the village of Maurach to start our hike . The lake was still two kilometers away, but we walked by wide green meadows where paragliders landed after jumping off from the nearby mountains.
The trail initially passes through a park which has a steam train taking passengers to a ferry service providing rides to the villages around the lake.
It is an easy dirt flat trail beside the lake for the first three kilometers. Then it slowly starts to climb gently and becomes a narrow winding rocky trail carved on the side of the mountain.
Passing slow or hikers coming from opposite directions is done cautiously as there is a steep drop to the deep and cold emerald and blue lake. But everyone is courteous and cooperative and there is always a good day greeting.
There are plenty of “ooh “ and “wow ” spots and photo taking especially after rounding a bend.
We had our packed lunch and dipped our feet in the frigid water at a bay midway through the hike after seeing some hikers swimming there.
After three hours, we arrived at Gaisalm, an arcadian meadow with a restaurant selling much needed refreshments. There is nothing more refreshing and invigorating after a long hot hike than the popular Almdudler, a sweetened carbonated beverage of grape and apple juice flavored with herbs.
Gaisalm means she-goat meadow but because it was already mid-September and before it snows , the goats have been herded back to the villages.
From here, it was another three-hour hike to Scholastika at the other end of the lake where we took a ferry back to our starting point.
Most of the narrow trail hugs the sides of the mountain but as we near the end of the hike , it is through flat farmland and pastures. Whilst waiting for the ferry, we had coffee and the seasonal plum cake to keep warm as cold winds started whipping up.
In the ferry, we could retrace our hike along the lake in warmth and comfort as cold and grey autumn sets in. Out on the lake, some hardy souls were windsurfing and kite surfing on the last rays of a setting sun .
Koo Wee Hon (kooweehon@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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