A new view of a well-known scene
It’s wonderful to find a new, photographically perfect viewpoint in a place I know so well. (Of course, on a day when I only had my smartphone with me.) Expect to see more shots from this spot in Grindelwald!…
Grindelwald
Grindelwald – a name known by millions of Harry Potter fans the world over thanks to its use by J.K. Rowling – is in fact a small town nestled in the mountains above Interlaken, in the Jungfrau Region of central Switzerland. The town is a magnet for winter sports and hiking aficionados as it is surrounded on all sides by mountains: the Männlichen ridge and the slopes down from First provide sledge runs, ski pistes and good hiking trails. The main alpine chain – including the world-famous Eiger North Wall – seals off the southern side of the valley and provides a huge challenge for many climbers.
The only main access point to the town is from the north, via a narrow road and a partially-cogged railway winding up the Lütschine valley from Interlaken. This affords little hindrance to the thousands of tourists who come to admire the landscape, cover the slopes and stroll amongst the tourist shops along the main street in search of a suitably Swiss trinket to take home. The town is best visited between seasons, when the cablecars and public transport continue to run, but the crowds are greatly lessened and one can get up above the town to admire the views and revel in the majestic silence.
A new view of a well-known scene
Grindelwald, December 2017
The best time to visit the mountain villages near our home is between the tourist seasons, when many hotels are closed and the valleys, cable cars and mountain cableways are much quieter. We drove up to Grindelwald shortly before Christmas, to visit the mountain restaurant at Schreckfeld, where deep snow and temperatures as low as -12°C greeted us.
Firsts of August
1st August is Switzerland’s Bundestag (or federal day), so Jo and I usually take advantage of the day off work to celebrate our adopted home. Here are some photographic mementoes of the day trips we’ve made. Interlaken, 2006 Brienzer Rothorn, 2007 Bachalp, Grindelwald, 2010 Mattehubel, Reutigen, 2012 Glacier 3000, 2013 Oberberghorn, 2014 Hardergrat, 2015…
Grindelwald by night – a timelapse
A overnight timelapse of the view across the valley from Grindelwald First.
Hiking with Google Street View
“Hiking” the path from Grindelwald First to the Faulhorn and on to Schynige Platte using Google Street View.
Grindelwald First, Switzerland
The mountain restaurant and top cable car station at First, above Grindelwald, affords amazing views down to the valley and to the huge wall of rock opposite: including the famous Eiger North Wall.
The necessary evil
The Swiss need foreigners to keep their tourism industry afloat, but many resent the fact enough to complain about it, publicly and loudly.
Pfingstegg, Grindelwald, Switzerland
Pfingstegg, on an elevated ledge amongst the southern cliff faces in the Grindelwald valley, is the starting point for a great hike. The path is less well-trodden than the easier and more popular routes on Männlichen and First, but offers much more dramatic views than the gentler routes in the valley. Once away from the restaurant and summer toboggan run,…
Jungfraujoch, Switzerland
The Jungfraujoch is the prime tourist destination in Switzerland’s Jungfrau region. High atop a mountain “saddle” between the Mönch and Jungfrau peaks, it’s accessible by taking a cog-wheel train which makes its way to the summit through a tunnel carved into the mountain. Temperatures in winter can plunge a low way below freezing, but we were lucky enough to…
Bachalp, Switzerland
Bachalp is an area of the mountains which ring the northern side of the Grindelwald valley. It’s a popular tourist destination, as its fairly easy to reach on foot in around 45 minutes from the cable car station at First. Hardier walkers continue on from the much-photographed lake Bachalpsee onto a steeper path, which leads up to the Faulhorn mountain hostel.
Sulzibiel, Switzerland
The lake at Bachalp, around 45 minutes’ walk from the First mountain restaurant above Grindelwald, is well-known from tourist photographs, given that its refection on a calm day contains some of the highest and most striking peaks in the region. But nearby, an unnamed pond on a part of the mountain called Sulzibiel is just as good at reflecting: from this…
Männlichen, Switzerland
The mountain slopes near the world-famous Eiger are a destination for thousands of skiers and snowboarders in winter. On the Männlichen plateau, above Grindelwald and Wengen, the best time of day for photography is shortly before sunset, when the sports people have left for the day and only cable-car staff and a few sunset-hunting visitors are still on the mountain.
Männlichen, Switzerland
Low cloud drifts through the Lauterbrunnen Valley, below the level of the cable car station on the Männlichen plateau.
First, Grindelwald, Switzerland
A rare shadow self-portrait, on the slopes behind the top cable car station of First, above Grindelwald.
First, Grindelwald, Switzerland
The mountain restaurant and top cable car station at First, above Grindelwald, affords amazing views down to the valley and to the huge wall of rock opposite: including the famous Eiger North Wall.
