That's it, I'm moving to Switzerland!

5 years ago
22

Picture a dream mountain resort and it would look a lot like Grindelwald in the Bernese Alps. This village is under the infamous North Face of Eiger, a monumental wall of rock that inspires and intimidates in equal measure. The North Face was first conquered in 1938 and attracts hundreds of climbers every year, which look like tiny flecks as they battle up the rock. Grindelwald’s Alpine pastures are achingly idyllic and cable-cars make it easy to hit the trails for scenic mountain lookouts, the Grindelwald Glacier and lakes. When decked with snow, this landscape has been a filming location for Star Wars and James Bond movies, and serves up dozens of kilometres of ski trails and sledging runs in winter. Catch the gondola up from Grindelwald to this minor summit on Schwarzhorn, where a mountain of adventure is in store. Something that will appeal to everyone with a head for heights is the First Cliff Walk. This is a metallic walkway, hugging the side of the cliff and then projecting 45 metres over a sheer drop. The views of the sharp rocky slopes, peaks, Alpine pastures, distant lakes and a waterfall are simply staggering. The First Flyer, for thrill-seekers, is a zip-line 800 metres in length and reaching speeds of 84 km/h. First is the trailhead for a host of hikes, a few of which we’ll come to shortly. And for high-altitude fun, families can hire mountain carts or “trottibikes”, a hybrid of scooters and bicycles.
Seasoned hikers and climbers may already know about the Eiger trail, a six kilometre route that brings you right to the foot of the Eiger’s north face. The route been used by climbers since the 1930s to embark on gruelling ascents of that concave slab of rock 1,600 metres high. The way to do it is to catch the Jungfrau railway to Eigergletscher and within minutes you’ll be dwarfed by the north face. Take a pair of binoculars on a clear day to see climbers picking their way up this wall, and look north where Grosse Scheidegg and the Wetterhord command the landscape. The six-kilometre walk to Alpiglen Station shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours, and where it gets tricky there are ropes fastened to the rock beside the path

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