Wengen, Switzerland, July 22, 2012 

Wengen to Mannlichen to Kleine Scheidegg to Alpiglen to Brandegg to Holenstein to Mannlichen to Wengen

Day 3, another hiking day!

Clouds below Mannlichen really do look like down comforters.

We have a plan--walk to Kleine Scheidegg and then decide where-to from there.

Wildflowers are everywhere along the trail.  Clouds still fill in the lower elevations so there's no majestic mountain view.  But it's not raining today.

Intermittent obscurity.  It's cool; really the perfect walking weather.  But I wish we could see the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau, and the meadows aka ski slopes.

                                  How big is the sky when the clouds lift?

At Kleine Scheidegg, the map shows climbing routes up the treacherous north face of the Eiger.  We reconfirm that we're not doing any mountain climbing.





While we take a short break, we decide on where we're walking from here.

Alpiglen beckons.  It's less than 2 hours away.

Alpiglen's train station is our stop for lunch, a drink, and WC.

Decisions decisions.  We're not ready to end our walking day.  The sun is out, and no blisters yet.

We hop the train here, and ride one stop to Brandegg. 

There we bypass the sun-filled outdoor eating area at the restaurant, and take to the trail that will take us over to Holenstein.  There's a mid-way station there where we can catch the gondola coming from Grindelwald, and arrive back up at Mannlichen.

It's mostly downhill to Holenstein, right?









 And look at that sunny sky!

Relentless uphills suggest peeling off a layer or two.



















The views are worth the sweat.

                                                             Grindelwald in the valley.

 A couple of hours later, back up at Mannlichen, the valley clouds bump up against the mountain and outline the ridges.

 We ride the tram down to Wengen, and a rest for our feet.  Ah--one tiny blister on my left middle toe.