Alpspitze

Thanks to my bum knee, we didn't get to hike the famous Hoellentalklamm trail. This was a real disappointment to Stefan, and I felt bad (in more ways than one!). However, we still had fun doing other things. We had driven to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, two towns that had merged together and had hosted the 1936 winter Olympics. There's some sort of American military facility tucked in there, but mainly it's just way tricked out in tourist stuff. We found it suffocating and thought the nearby village of Grainau was a treat.

Towering over these little valley towns was Germany's tallest peak, the Zugspitze. We had been warned that the famous ascent was pricey and the observation platform was just a boring slab of concrete. So we ascended a slightly shorter set of mountains that adjoined it for a fraction of the cost and arguably had a much better view and overall experience. We first ascended the Kreuzeck in a cool little cable car shaped like a bubble. A rowdy bunch of paragliders and their clients jumped in the car ahead of us.Once at the top of the Kreuzeck you could pick from a myriad of trails to hike. Alpine flowers were blooming, grandparents strolling, and I was gimp-limping. I saw a typical Bavarian hiker of olden days:

and one of more modern days (Stefan):

A 30 minute walk on this trail

got us to the next cable car, the Hochalmbahn, that would take us to the top of the Osterfelderkopf, which is basically right in front of the Alpspitze. Fully automated and a little creepy. Normally we would've walked up the trail below...(Alpspitze in background):

Once at the top of the Hochalmbahn, we were also basically at the top of the Alpsitzebahn. this gave us great views of the valley, the Eibsee, Grainau, and Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Stefan's father spent his first 10+ years growing up in Garmisch and often brought the family here for holidays. Even though it's overdeveloped now, it still holds a sentimental spot for the family.

Since it was long past the lunch hour we had skipped, and because all that cable car riding was so exhausting (i kid!) we had a late lunch of weisswurst, brezel, and mustard.

Then we began our ascent on the Alpspitze cable car and I very nearly lost my brezel! Not the most friendly of rides for those of us who like to sit in these things and aren't fond of heights.

All in all - a good experience despite the knee! We'll be back to hike the Hoellentalklamm (shot taken from the top, visable trail outlined in red)