May 30, 2023
Day 4 - Hiking the Krimml Falls
I’ve been to the Krimml falls twice before. They are a three step series of falls and the highest ones in Europe. They are back at the far southern end of the Pinzgau, the valley which the Salzach flows through on its way to the Donau. The Krimml falls are in Hohe Tauern Nationalpark which is full of 3,000+ meter peaks. The previous times I hiked the falls were in august. I was curious to see if there was any difference in the amount of water flow.
Rather than try to ride up the valley and back in the allotted timeframe, I instead arranged a two-night stay in Zell am See and took the train up. What I didn’t realize is that they are replacing a large portion of the tracks meaning the majority of the trip is by bus. The bus ride takes longer, although the drivers do make every effort to save time by blasting around curves, stopping at the last minute, and generally driving like race car drivers. I would have napped on the bus since I’m still adjusting from jet lag, but every time k dozed off the driver would either slam on the brakes or swing wildly around a corner. It was quite the exciting ride.
The hike up along the falls is exactly how I remember it: steep. I’m trained for cycling and climbing in a bike. Trust me, the muscles for hiking are quite different. It was still worth it for the nice scenery. An added bonus is the snow capped mountain peaks this time of year. The rain even politely waited until the hike was done. There was never anything more than a sprinkle while hiking. There was, however, a goodly downpour during the exciting bus ride back.
It’s a nice walk back down the mountain to the train station rather than taking the bus. There is some real nice scenery along the way along with some friendly cows, and some goats. The mama goat did look a little concerned about human presence. I wanted to pet the goats, but between the electric fence and the side eye from mama goat, I resisted the urge.
Other than that I don’t have anything exciting to report today besides a big picture dump. Tomorrow it’s back to riding. The ride will include a nasty climb up the side of the mountain because bikes aren’t allowed in the tunnel on the Bundesstrasse. You can place your bets now on whether or not any pushing happens. At least it is paved. What gravel there is should be well-behaved gravel, unlike that awful stuff yesterday. And that is all. I am tired. I am going to sleep. I must rest for the big climb tomorrow.
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