We got up bright and early, took extra clothes with us and headed for the Ice Cave. I was VERY glad we decided to hike it with extra layers of clothes. The cable car lifted us 1,500 feet in elevation (to about 4,200 feet - surprisingly, the Alps aren't all that high, just steep) to the upper terminal. They had a beer house/lunch place there (which was supplied by cable car, exclusively). We then looped around the side and started to hike up to the cave. It took about 20 minutes for this 10 min. hike - partially because it was STEEP, partially because the views were so amazing.
The Alps are different than other mountains I have encountered. They have definite slopes at their feet (that remind me a lot of the southern Appalachian Mountains - better than a "hill", covered with trees or fields). Then, out of the top of that, a STEEP (70 degree incline frequently) rocky peak would climb toward the sky. The trip up the cable car took us from the vegetation zone squarely into the rocky zone. We continued to hike the rocky portion.
There were concrete roofs over portions of the trail to divert rocks that would occasionally break loose from above.
The trail, while steep, was fairly decent: it was at least six feet wide and usually had a guard rail.
Toward the top, we found one of the 'real' alpine trails. A lot of people enjoy hiking the Alps and staying in the "huts". These huts are pretty much in the middle of nowhere (the only access is by foot or, sometimes, helicopter) and have very limited amenities (usually a fireplace and floor space for your bed roll). While I could actually see doing that sometime, if I had to go on that trail, it is an experience I will NEVER be able to do.
If that trail was 18 inches wide, it definitely was not any wider. It was rough and rocky (COVERED in gravel) and on the side of an incline (another one of those 70 degree+ slopes) that went down at least 200 feet. They did have a "very" thin steel cable hand rail - on the INSIDE of the trail (i.e. it was next to rock - you put your left hand on that; your right hand was over the drop).
Teresa asked me if I thought I could hike that trail. I truthfully replied that I didn't think a mountain goat could hike that trail safely�.
We hiked to the ice cave entrance and joined the tour that was just about to leave. There were four of us that spoke English, so the guide put us right next to him.
Each couple was handed an old style miner's lamp (I believe they ran on kerosene). They had an small, open flame backed up by a chromed reflector.
The cave complex was right around 4,700 feet high, on the edge of the mountain. It ran for 24 kilometers through the various ridges and had several openings to the outside.
The temperature stays right around freezing inside, all through summer (around -15 degrees through the winter). Please remember that we were there in the middle of a very unusual European heat wave.
After we hiked about 500 yards inside the cave we came to a door. The door was closed. When they opened the doors, we found out why.
Cold air is under higher pressure than warmer air. Higher pressure tends to move toward lower pressure.
There was a SIGINFIGANT wind coming through that door (around 45 miles per hour - the guide said on hot summer afternoons, it has been clocked as high as 60). My lamp promptly blew out, but the guide restarted it with his once everyone was inside.
This place was "low tech". There were NO electric lights� if you wanted to see something; you aimed your miner's light at it. If the guide wanted to show you something, he lit some magnesium tape to give you brighter light.
This place was a STRENUOUS workout. We walked a kilometer (about .6 of a mile) in, and then back. And on the way, we climbed UP 700 stairs. And DOWN 700 stairs on the way back.
Remember my comment about crawling into a refrigerator? Teresa commented on it at about step 350 or so� (be careful what you wish for) effectively right in the middle of the biggest FREEZER, much less a refrigerator that I've ever seen.
The cave was beautiful and really unusual. And then I saw something I think I will always remember�.
I've been talking about these very steep (almost shear) drops on the side of the Alps. This cave comes off of one of them (i.e. the entrance is pretty much in a rock wall).
The workmen for some reason, had mounted a 2x10, about 10 feet long, to the left of the entrance (i.e. on the other side from the trail up).
Picture this - it's pretty much a cliff with at least a 200 foot drop and this one flat board with no guards, rails, grab lines or anything on it.
And, on that board, one of the workers was taking a nap. They were evidently on break when we came out.
If he had rolled over in his sleep, he would have rolled off the board.
Not somewhere I could ever have gone to sleep�.
Once we made our way back down the mountain, we decided to drive up into the Bavarian (German) Alps.
The border crossing was no big deal - actually, I'm not even sure the border post had windows in it any more - but you could tell things were different. For one thing, there were the speed limit signs.
When the speed limits tell you the speed limit for cars and tanks, you know you aren't in Austria any more.
We drove through Brechragarden and stopped at Kongigsee; a beautiful high alpine lake - very long and narrow (relatively near where Hitler's Bavarian Retreat was). We wandered through the shpping village that was accessible at the head of the lake.
Think Gatlinburg, in German, with a bobsled run at the end of the main tourist strip and a nice lake.
Teresa again showed her uncanny ability to make distinctive and nice outfits from sidewalk sales. We kept finding out that we blended in fairly well�. People kept mistaking us for German. They would stroll up and try to carry on conversations with us -- pretty funny, since we knew five words in German. One of the shops was having a sidewalk sale. Teresa found a nice jacket - bavarian but elegant at the same time - on the rack. She picked it up and went inside the store and find out how much it was.
The poor saleslady that was stationed out there promptly followed along, chattering away in German. Teresa didn't realize the lady was talking to her, she continued inside� the saleslady followed, chattering a little louder in German�. I saw what was happening, walked over and very obviously said "Hello" to the saleslady. She promptly started laughing, switched to English and was very helpful.
We wandered for a bit and finally stopped in a geusthaus by the lake for an excellent dinner before we drove back into Austria and to Maria Alm for the night.