Mürren

Traveling to the top of the world via gondola, or Bergbahn, seems sketchy. The station ahead of us placed atop a vegetationless mountain of sedimentary rock. Upheld by two cables and weighted down by up to 80 people, the gondola ride is truly amazing. Or terrifying. Quelching the tourists' fears, however, the gondola operator proclaimed in halting English, ""No need to worry, you are not in the United States. You are in Switzerland!"

Nevertheless, I felt joyous to disembark halfway on the return journey, in Birg. The last of the slushy snow scrunched underfoot for the first third of our hike. A slide of dirty snow clumps reminders of the avalanches from earlier in the season. This is the first of three days and three hikes in the area, covering much of the ground near our hotel in Mürren and venturing a bit farther to the North Face and Eigergletscher.

Near the Eigergletscher trailhead a group of Greenland dogs are housed. Informative signs talk about these adopted work dogs. As we are watching the dogs and the Glacier an avalanche started to tumble and tumble down the side of the mountain. Hearing this, the dogs jumped up and barked wildly. Such a fantastic trained reaction to the distant, low rumbling of a snow slide.

Studded into the scenery are, natürlich, yellow signposts including hiking distances. What I learned from these is a yearly race called the Inferno takes place in this very beautiful land each August. Crossing the frigid Thunersee with a 3.1km swim, cycling to Grindelwald with a distance of 97km, mountainbiking to Stechelberg for 30km and then running the distance up, up, up to the Schilthorn at 2970m. A bit inspired? A bit crazy?

My friend hillseeker claims she'll do it if I do it...What do you think? Please let me know in the poll on right!