Posts about 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.
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Random things in August
A lovely month full of experiences, but fewer random photographs than usual.
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Random things in January
It seems to stick in my mind that by the time we get to January, we’re well into winter. But the snow and ice often doesn’t arrive where I live until January or February, although that doesn’t preclude it being pretty damned cold from time to time. January this year marked the arrival of my […]
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Trying to communicate scale
How to help a viewer to better understand the scale of a scene.
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Using colour profiles in Lightroom
By applying the right colour profile to your photo, you can get a much more nuanced version than through simple editing.
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The Lauberhorn flight
I visit the wintry mountain-top viewpoint at Männlichen, above Wengen and Grindelwald, to photograph the annual combined Patrouille Suisse/SWISS airliner air show.
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Martinsloch, Grindelwald
The sun shines through a small hole in the rock face of the Eiger at Grindelwald for a couple of minutes, twice every year.
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Review of 2018
It’s been a very difficult year, but the sadness has been diluted a little with some lovely memories along the way. Here’s to a better 2019.
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The first cable-car in Switzerland
The Wetterhorn Aufzug in Grindelwald took visitors up towards the Wetterhorn until 1915.
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Green ripples
I was intrigued by this effect. Although the photo looks like green sand, the ripples are actually light and shade cast by the sun on the rippling surface of the lake.
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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!
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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 […]
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A cold, cold afternoon
It had been a beautifully sunny start to the day, but by the time we’d driven up to Grindelwald, the clouds had taken over and the temperature had plummeted. We had to use a plastic loyalty card to scrape the ice from the inside of the cable car window, and the fondue at the mountain […]
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Hireleni
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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.
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Grindelwald by night – a timelapse
A overnight timelapse of the view across the valley from Grindelwald First.
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Hiking with Google Street View
“Hiking” the path from Grindelwald First to the Faulhorn and on to Schynige Platte using Google Street View.
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In action at Männlichen
Yours truly, in action whilst photographing part of a multi-image panorama at Männlichen in Switzerland last weekend.
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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.
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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.
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Kleine Scheidegg to Lauberhorn
A steep and stony path from the mountain hamlet of Kleine Scheidegg leads to the top of the world-famous Lauberhorn, from which the intrepid author gets an unparalleled view of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau.
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Grindelwald in the “good old days”
Travellers, historians and winter sport fanatics (and those of us who are less fanatic but still enjoy the mountains) will love this old film by Ronald Haines, shot in 1956 in the Swiss mountain resort of Grindelwald and on the surrounding mountains. (Link via Grindelwald Tourism on Facebook.)
