We were fortunate enough that we had a 12:55 pm flight so we got to stay our last night in Lauterbrunnen. The trains in Switzerland are the most reliable, so we felt completely safe about staying in Lauterbrunnen and having a 2.5-hour train ride in the morning.
We woke up and enjoyed breakfast at Hotel Staubach and bid our farewells. No matter how much time we spend in Lauterbrunnen, I always feel sad to leave. I was, however, so excited about getting home to see Miss Lotti!
We arrived in Zurich with enough time to visit the Swiss lounge before boarding our flight. I must say, the croissant I had for breakfast was simply amazing. Nutella just hits differently in Europe.
We had a lovely flight home watching movies and napping. Lucky for me I was able to watch one of my favorite episodes of Friends.
So many of my favorite things in this photo
We arrived in DC and called our friend Scott to see if he would pick up Lotti from boarding so we could see her when we got home.
It was so nice to see our girl when we got home! We truly had a wonderful trip. We loved our time in each place and it was so nice to have so much time in our beloved Lauterbrunnen. We cannot wait for our next trip!
Thanks to Ken for spoiling me with our European adventure. Until next time, Europe!
Our last full day in Switzerland. This post is difficult to write just because it is so hard to put into words what an amazing day it was.
We decided to save one for the best hikes for our final day. We were so fortunate to have a beautiful day for such a beautiful hike. We hiked from Schynige Platte to First back in 2017 and we knew we had to do it again!
We took an early train to Wilderswil to catch the Cog train up to Schynige Platte. The train was super busy. It seems that most people like to take the early Cog train. The entire hike is roughly 10 miles with around 2800 feet of elevation gain. Once you arrive at First, most people take the cable car down to Grindelwald to avoid the long steep descent down the valley. The last cable car leaves at 18:00, which is why everyone tries to get one of the first Cog trains to Schynige Platte.
The views from the train definitely do not disappoint and I was so excited knowing we were going to have a beautiful day to hike!
The view from the cog train. That is looking into the beautiful Lauterbrunnen Valley.
You have two choices of trails. A lower trail and a higher panoramic trail. Both trails eventually meet and you end up on the same path. We like to hike the panoramic trail to see the views of the lake.
The Monch, Eiger, and Jungfrau were definitely showing off for us!
Cowbells and peaks, how Swiss!
I would love to have one of these cowbells! We have a smaller version in our house that we bought in Murren in 2017. I love bringing things like this home to remind us of our travels!
When you see a wooden cow while in Switzerland, you obviously have to hop on it!
I hope I never lose my ability to have fun! That backdrop sure looks amazing.
The panoramic trail does not disappoint and offers up beautiful views of the lakes and Interlaken. The color of the water gets me every time.
So picturesque. The sound of the cowbells certainly adds to it!
The view of Interlaken and Lake Brienz. We were just at the opposite lake, Lake Thun, a few days prior. The color of the water is simply unbelievable.
My handsome hiking partner for the day loving his favorite hike.
Wildflowers and mountains, two of my favorites
If you are looking for a full day hike with incredible views, this is the hike for you.
Loving all of the sunshine!
Every turn you see a more beautiful view
You definitely have to allow extra hiking time for all of the photo stops!
One of my favorite parts of this hike was when we ended up behind a British family. It was a mom and dad and two children. The dad was telling fun facts about the mountains to the children. Ken and I both enjoyed learning all of the trivia knowledge from him!
We reached the top of a climb and again had beautiful views of Lake Brienz
Panoramic peaks
We were definitely enjoying our day together.
In 2017, we hiked in June and it was a little early. We were disappointed that we did not get to visit the Faulhorn. We knew it would be open in August so we planned to stop there for lunch.
Getting a view of the Faulhorn
I have to say, when you arrive at the sign to start the climb to the Faulhorn, it looks rather steep and intimating. It really is not as bad as it looks! Plus, the views are pretty darn amazing.
Beautiful views on the way to the Faulhorn!
Lunch and wine views at the Faulhorn
Views for days
We were delighted that the Faulhorn accepted credit cards as we were on our final day and running low on Francs and were trying to avoid a visit to the ATM.
We descended the trail from the Faulhorn and found a field of cows.
Ken loves the Swiss cows just as much as I do!
Please excuse me while I post way too many photos of the Bachalpsee. The views were simply incredible. We were hoping to be able to capture a photo to enlarge to hang in our house. Now the difficult part will be choosing which one!
Bachalpsee showing off for us
Each view of the Bachalpsee was more beautiful than the last
Wildflowers joined the show
We ended up seeing our British friends again and chatted with them for a bit. We were so impressed with their children completing such a long hike. It was nice to exchange travel stories with them and we also took a few family photos for them.
Bachalpsee
Absolutely stunning
As if it were not gorgeous enough, we descended further and saw the cows. My beloved Swiss cows!
Loving our amazing day and sad that the hike is coming to an end.
Hello Mr Cow!
Bachalpsee cows
This one is probably my favorite photo
So beautiful
Alpine lakes, mountains, and cows. Simply Switzerland.
Bachalpsee
We hiked away from the lake and found more beautiful views and more cows. I joined the cows for a photo and one of the cows tried to lick me. I almost peed my pants.
Sit Mrs. Cow, sit!
Then this happened. The Switzerland that no one wants you to see. Yes, I took photos of this. I was dying laughing like a teenager.
In case it is not clear, I adore Swiss Cows
We arrived in First and bought tickets for the cable car to get down to Grindelwald. We took the train from Grindelwald back to Lauterbrunnen. I stopped at the Co-op to stock up on chocolate before we went back to the hotel. We were pretty undecided about dinner as we did not want to do anything fancy. We settled on going to Camping Jungfrau to get a pizza and drinks, but sadly the restaurant and bar were both closed that day.
We decided to walk down the valley and get food at our favorite little spot by the Schilthorn cable car. I am sure very few people walk three miles to get dinner, but we wanted to visit Margie's one more time. We ended up talking to the guy running the place and learning about his life in Switzerland and about his bike travels with his wife. It was the perfect end to our time in Switzerland.
We enjoyed a last drink and walked back down the valley one last time, feeling so grateful for an amazing trip. We arrived at the hotel and packed up and we were both happy with our final day doing one of our favorite hikes.
We woke up on Tuesday to a beautiful day! We planned to take it easy but had plans to do the easy walk to Murren, down to Gimmelwald, and then down the valley back to Lauterbrunnen.
I started my morning with a run down the valley. The views did not disappoint.
Morning running views
We took the cable car from Lauterbrunnen to Grutschalp. Usually we wake up pretty early to get started, but we ended up waiting until around 11:00 or so to head up to the mountains.
The train headed to Murren. We have never been passengers on this train! One day we will when we are not capable of making the three mile walk!
It was another beautiful day.
We took the lower path instead of the mountain view trail. We stopped at Winteregg hoping to get a little lunch with a beautiful view, but it was packed! We ended up continuing on to Murren and stopping at the Bellevue Hotel for drinks and charcuterie.
Charming Murren
Happy in Murren
The panoramic patio at the Bellevue Hotel never disappoints. Add in an Aperol Spritz and a charcuterie board, and it is a perfect day!
After our snacks, we walked down to Gimmelwald. We visited all of our favorites including the Honesty Shop and then made our way to the Mountain Hostel for a drink.
Mountain Hostel views
Aperol Spritz at the Mountain Hostel? Yes please!
We took the cable car from Gimmelwald down to Stechelberg and stopped off at Margie's for snacks for the walk back. I was dying for an ice cream bar!
A Magnum bar for our favorite stroll down the valley.
We always enjoy the walk back to Lauterbrunnen watching the base jumpers. We did see some jump from a different spot this year. There were about 10 in a row that jumped from Wengen. It is always so crazy to watch them!
Evening valley views
We ended the night at our hotel where our friend Adam played the piano for us before we headed off to bed for our long hike in the morning. It ended up being the pefect lowkey day that we had in mind. Lowkey still meant 13.6 miles. That is how we do vacation!
August 1st is Swiss National Day, which is the equivalent of our 4th of July. We were sad to learn that there was not going to be a parade this year and that the fireworks would not happen due to a burn ban in the canton. We were grateful we saw the fireworks last year!
We decided that we would go to Interlaken which we have never visited before. We planned to check out the city and then go to one of the smaller villages.
I ran and enjoyed my views around town. Ken was not feeling 100% so he napped while I was out and about.
My running views
With it being Sunday, I was treated to the church bells while I was running around the town.
Lauterbrunnen was looking beautiful as we made our way to the train station.
We arrived in Interlaken and did not really appreciate it much. We decided to board the train to Spiez, which I was super excited about. I had read that Spiez has the feel of an Italian village on the Mediterranean. I could not agree with that statement more!
We found an Italian restaurant along the water and enjoyed Aperol Spritz and pizza. It was lovely.
The water was so blue and beautiful.
Aperol Spritz for two, please!
Ken was loving our relaxing day along the water
I was loving feeling like we were in Italy!
Lunch views
We ordered wine after our Aperol Spritz and enjoyed the views
A view of our lunch spot. It was the perfect little spot along the lake
Walking around the harbor
I am sure that the water was pretty chilly!
We decided to take the boat back to Interlaken to catch the train back to Lauterbrunnen. We enjoyed the boat trip while the boat stopped at different villages along lake Thun.
Ferry views
This was one of my favorite little areas along Lake Thun. I would love to come back here and spend a night!
We had a lovely Swiss National Day and loved visiting a new spot in Switzerland!
.JPG)
.JPG)
