To St. Gilgen

September 14, 1999 to September 15, 1999

Another easy ride to another lovely lake, for a two night stand. The ride, surprisingly enough, was marred by the fact that we once more got lost in Bad Ischl. A shameful record, getting lost twice in a rather small town.

In St. Gilgen we found our least satisfactory lodging since Poland. Too bad, since we were here for two nights. We stayed in a private guesthouse rather than a hotel, primarily because of an error in the index of our guidebook which led me to looking without success for the hotels in neighboring Saint Wolfgang instead. We finally gave up looking for the apparently nonexistent hotels and stopped at a randomly chosen guesthouse.

The guesthouse itself wasn’t really that bad, except that the mattresses were poor and the breakfasts were just wierd - bad coffee, very runny eggs, and a hostess who insisted on seating others at our small table even though there were no other lodgers in the entire room. Bizarre.

St. Gilgen highlights:

Above all, a stunning hike to the top of Schafberg, 1300 meters above the lake, for breathtaking views of the surrounding lakes and mountains. After climbing very steeply for several hours, it was shocking to reach the summit and peer over the guardrail to the north, where the mountain drops precipitously to the Mondsee basin.
The ride down feom Schafberg on the cogwheel steam train, ending at St. Wolfgang.
An enjoyable Austrian / fish dinner at a waterfront restaurant, watching the sunset and the departure of an evening dinner cruise.
On the second night, a good Italian meal,on a balcony overlooking the lake.
Rachael found a new blouse at a market in St. Wolfgang.
Another two days of fabulous weather.

Schafberg, the stunning crag rising above the Mondsee.

The astounding view from the top of the Schafberg. Regardless of the quality of this old scanned photo, it was a clear day. If there’s one spot in the Salzkammergut I’d like to revisit, it’s this one.

The cogwheel train up the Schafberg. We hiked up and rode it down, but you can take it both ways if you just want the view at the top.

Today's ride: 50 km (31 miles)
Total: 1,067 km (663 miles)

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