It was a cold and misty morning…

Well actually, yes literally it was rather chilly and foggy the saturday my friend Franz and I popped down to a small trail near Tegernsee. Our previous plans for the morning had been altered and we had spontaneously decided to open the AlpenVereins App and choose a hike to go on. BodenSchneid won. It said it was a medium difficulty with a moderate steep incline. Which to us seemed not so tricky a task.

The start was a lovely autumn stroll. The gorgeous colours of fall flew through the air and littered the pathways. Small babbling brooks grew into roaring rivers and guided us towards the mountain.

As we began to enter the woods it seemed like a fairytale. Tall thin trees wearing moss at their bases with smalll cozy benches beckoning us to soak up the scenery

A little further along the trail the trees had collapsed and transformed themselves into bridges underwhich we carried forth. It reminded me a bit of a story board map.

First we must pass through the woods, underneath the arches,

over the viaduct and then we will change course at

an old cutters cabin where the heart of the forest meets the slope of the outstretched mountain side.

Instantanously landscape shifted, and the forest dissolved ever so slighlty to show us a glimpse of the neighboring mountain faces.

The final flight up the mountain was caked with mud and achingly inclined. We had taken advantage of the start and were rewarded with a shocking suprise. But like all good adventures, once we reached the end we were walking on air.

 

The view from the peak was gracious. The mountain ridges stretched out as far as the eye could see. Colourful valleys lit up bellow us in the fall spectrum, and the lake gave us a glimpse from around the bend.

We stopped briefly for a break, but with the stark wind chilling our bodies we hastily packed up and descented down into the valley.

The way was straightforward and smooth.

Luckily for us, we discovered we had taken the trip backwards. It was a 13,5 km circle up and down the mountain. Our declined turned out to be a delicate 5km nature walk

The forest was alive with the playful prismatic palettes of fall

The locals were not as enthused as I was, but quite charming as well

Down a long narrow road, the tour carried on for what felt like ages

I suppose it always feels that way though.

You enter an adventure with so much excitement and energy, but after a good five hours the mud, sweat and scenery begin to wear you down. You arrive at your starting point again full of fresh air and experience more than ready to head home to bed, where  you dream of a further future feat.