Author at Gilbach, going up.

South from the Hahnenmoos, Lenk down to the right

The bill, including my Apfelsaft, was only 42 fr, so I can be well pleased about that. It was rather dull when I set out for the Hahnenmoos. For the first two miles or so from Adelboden 1348m, it is a road walk and I passed a group of soldiers with field artillery, which I filmed. A Swiss couple from Schaffhausen came up and I walked to the top with them. The path branched off through the woods at Gilbach and wound wetly upward. Not such a vast number of flowers visible as yesterday. At the bottom of the egg railway to the Hahnenmoos, we were back on a quite reasonable road, which went to the top at 1950m. It took three hours to get up from Adelboden but this was, to some extent, still a training walk. We stopped in the café for half an hour where they bought the poor Englishman a coffee, then it started to rain a bit. Outside, people were flying radio-controlled gliders around. It only took an hour to get down to Lenk 1064m, through many more flowers than the other side. I found the Verkehrsbureau shut for a three hour lunch but outside was an electric hotel guide map with the free allocation of five hotels.

Seen from the OberLaubhorn looking North-East. Photos 2005.

The Stueblenipass , a possible for tomorrow, seen from the OberLaubhorn looking North-West. The Truttlisberg Pass is more-or-less behind the marked line.

I had hoped to find one some way up the Truttlisberg Pass to shorten tomorrow's marathon but, as it happened, the weather did not look too good, so I headed for the Hotel Waldrand as being the one nearest the pass. A good choice. It was rather nicer than yesterday's and the landlady spoke bad English she thought was good. I encouraged her to speak German! One look at me was enough for her to whip out a cheap-entry-to-the-swimming-pool ticket which I took immediate advantage of. It is a big indoor pool at 28°C, hot and very nice indeed. I lazed about for an hour, then went off to explore the village which is far more characterful than Adelboden. The reason for going to Lenk was to see if I could cross the main ridge by the Rawil Pass but it was no go, hence the South-West-facing Truttlisberg Pass. Then it rained solidly for the rest of the day (from 1645). This would have come down as snow above, of course, so there was much head-shaking at my plans. A good thing I have learned to listen to so-called local knowledge with scepticism. I chatted to a Fleming family, the father of which was born on 18-6-55! There was a Swiss folklore programme on the TV with an Alan Whicker type narrating. It was called 'Chumm und Lueg' ('Komm und Schau' in Hoch Deutsch).

Another Alternative - Going to Lauenen via Iffigenalp

It is an easy walk from Adelboden to Lenk & it is only another two & a half hour's walk on to Iffigenalp from Lenk, taking in the splendid Iffig Falls on the way. I did this on Monday 5th September 2005.