Last week, fueled by the Alps being so close and our four year anniversary, Zach and I decided to take our hosts advice and climb a mountain nearby. Nearby as in two hours away by car, so it was really a two day trip we had planned ahead. So we put on our hiking gear, brought along some food for the hike, laced up our boots and head off early Tuesday morning. Elke was sweet enough to provide us with some directions and a few keywords for the trails and the lodge we would stay in overnight at the top, but really we had no idea what we were getting into. All we knew was that once we saw those mountains, we were really excited.
The view was enough to get us excited to get started. Plus the air smelled incredible. We were the only hikers that we saw all day, so we didn't have to share that sweet sweet air with anyone else. We spent the first hour just walking through the woods at the base of the mountain, thoroughly confused at where we would find our Pühringerhütte (aka the lodge for brevity's sake). We had no idea where we were actually going, but knew enough to follow the little Austrian flags painted on the trees and keep an eye out for trail 213.
Look at us. So happy. So blissfully unaware of what was about to happen to us. This was all before we got on the actual trail up the mountain, which was humorously labeled a "5 hour 30 minute" hike.
And as soon as we got onto our trail, the terrain was rougher and decidedly more steep. I've prided myself on losing weight during the trip, but that doesn't equal being in shape. We were eventually stopping every few minutes just to catch our breath. Zach of course was doing well enough to branch out for some exploration while I huffed and puffed from my vantage point on a nearby rock.
I seriously cannot stress how little we knew about this trail. Every time we would come to a higher point I would think "Well, the lodge has to just be over that rock" and then we'd reach that point only to see another. As we climbed higher and higher up the face of the mountain, the going got a little harder. We diligently followed the little Austrian flags (now painted on rocks) across streams and over huge rocks, and had to trust in their validity when we clinging to a cable bolted into the mountain face, scrambling for footing on almost vertical slopes. But we continued to make our way up, partly because I knew there was no way I was going back down.
That's the forest we started in way down there.
The higher we climbed, the colder the weather became. We hadn't been climbing in the sun for hours now and we could literally watch ourselves climb into the clouds near the peak. Of course since we were climbing our bodies were just sweating, but unfortunately none of that heat ever makes it to your ears. Zach had his hat along, but I settled for wrapping my head in my scarf. Near the top is when we first came across our friend, the metal ladder. I'm not a big fan of ladders, but this one was especially sturdy being bolted into the mountain face so it got a pass.
Part of our food rations included chocolate wafer cookies that our hosts had bought us a few days before. So after an especially tough bit of climbing I would turn to Zach and ask "Cookie break?" I tried to sell it as a reward for overcoming some of my fear of heights, but really they're just delicious.
Finally we climbed over the last of the peaks and were treated not only to sunshine, but an entirely new terrain and a beautiful lush valley ahead of us. It felt like such an accomplishment to finally make it over that we even stopped a bit for pictures and a little cave exploration. We reveled in that moment, again completely unaware that we still had so much further to go.
The little flags were still with us along with a large rock confirming that we did indeed follow the right trail for 213, though the quality of these markers was starting to deteriorate. For awhile we had to start really searching for which direction to walk in. We were sure that our little lodge would be just over the hills again, but every crest was met with disappointment.
At this point, having hiked for around seven hours, our legs were starting to shake from exhaustion and the sun was beginning to descend. We continued weaving through the grassy hills, following our little flag guides, until we spotted a little arrangement of cabins. Sure it was our long awaited resting spot, we stopped to eat a quick apple to fuel us for the final walk. But when we arrived everything was padlocked and boarded up. Confused, we looked through windows and started calling out for anyone to hear us while Zach (later admitted) was starting to plan on how we would set up a camp in the wilderness with very limited supplies. Finally Zach went silent looking at a nearby sign.
"What was the lodge called again?"
"I don't remember... something hutte? Oh! I have the paper!"
Sure enough our little lodge's name matched the name on the sign which directed us to hike 45 minutes in a totally different direction. Zach looked at his watch and knew that the sun was going down in 45 minutes from research he did in the morning. So at this point of extreme exhaustion we were faced with even more hiking to commence at the same hour the sun would set. Knowing we had no other choice, we each hurriedly ate a granola bar for fuel and started off at a brisk pace on the trail. Something about having a certain purpose and a very limited time frame really can give you a second wind, as it definitely took us less than 45 minutes to see the beautiful view of the lodge on the lake.
When we finally reached the door, exhausted and out of breath from rushing, we were greeted cheerfully by one of the workers, asked to remove our hiking boots, and shown our dorm style room we'd be sharing with four other people. We were beyond physically exhausted and ended up just sitting on our beds for the first 20 minutes. Finally our stomachs led us out to explore where they kept the food and we dined on soup, bread, and beers that were absolutely earned.
That Tuesday was honestly one of the most challenging, inspiring, and heart tugging days I've ever had in my life. And that was just the way up!
For Part 2 of the mountain journey, click here!
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