Austria, Lichtenstein, Switzerland

Day 49: Sunday (9/28/2025). Turns out our happy place is often a hard place. Our happy place is in the mountains. The Austrian Alps are making us very happy…but they are also very hard. We left Flirsch with the goal of crossing Arlberg Pass, twelve miles distant and 3,000 feet above us. Several moments had us questioning our life choices. But it was glorious! It was stunning! It was worth the screaming thighs of death and every drop of sweat! We found a shelterd place in the sun, sat back and just drank in the views.

Interesting note about Arlberg Pass. It is home to the largest ski area in Austria. There are 186 miles of groomed trails, 120 miles of lift served backcountry routes, and 97 lifts. The scale boggles the mind. A tiny portion of that terrain was visible from the pass.

While gravity can be a heartless wench, as soon as we left the pass, she welcomed us back into her warm embrace. We gave almost no thought to pedaling for twenty-four miles. All told, we had over fifty miles under our tires when we rolled into our campground in Feldkirch. Without a doubt, one of our more challenging – and satisfying days of the trip.

Day 50: Monday (9/29/2025). Looking out the tent door, a heavy blanket of clouds rested on top of the trees. As the hours ticked by, there was no sign of the predicted clearing. When the first evidence of a sun finally appeared, we’d left Austria, biked eight miles through Lichtenstein, and entered Switzerland. We realized none of this until we checked our progress on the map. 

We were right back in our happy place as the clouds continued to part. The route followed a blissfully flat valley floor with peaks soaring above on either side. The last few miles hugged the shoreline of the Walensee. The views made the Swiss campground sticker shock slightly more bearable.

Day 51: Tuesday (9/30/2025). The rain played cat and mouse with us today. We being slow, geriatric mice and the rain being an athletic farm tabby, well versed in the black art of catching and toying with mice. That is to say, we got wet. Rolling into Pfaffikon, the nearest campground was twenty miles away in the next valley over. We opted for a night indoors.

Random thought: We love Switzerland … mostly. Our ride yesterday featured amazing scenery. What we could see of it today was just as nice. The bike path along the lake this morning was an engineering marvel and scenic wonder. Almost all our miles in Switzerland have been on dedicated bike paths or scenic backroads with no traffic. People have been friendly and helpful. All huge checks in the plus column. So where does the mostly come from? Sticker shock! $45-$50 to pitch our tent! Really? Yes, there are showers, but really?? With the price of groceries, we decided that now might be a good time to start a diet. It reminds me of the joke, “How do you become a millionaire in Telluride? Move there with two million and don’t stay long.”  I know. Look where you are and what your doing. Stop whining! OK.

Day 52: Wednesday (10/1/2025).

“You’ve come far pilgrim.”

“Feels far.”            

“Were it worth the trouble?”

“Ah? What trouble?”

-scene from Jeremiah Johnson

The first day of October. Fifty-two days on the road. With today’s forty miles added to the total, one thousand five hundred meandering miles from Helsinki. It feels far. We have had countless hours of low gear grinding, overcast skies, unrelenting headwinds, chilly days and frosty nights. We have had countless miles of  beautiful scenery, miles of glorious downhill coasting, tailwinds, sunshine, and warmth. Today was unique, and yet very much like all the others. “Ah? What trouble?” 

Over the mountains and through the woods, along rivers and through fields, we arrived at Lucerne mid-afternoon. It is lovely. It is historic. Its setting on the shores of Lake Lucerne and straddling the Reuss River is stunning. This will likely come across as jaded and unappreciative – but we’re kind of “over” the big, touristic spots. The street level shops of beautiful, historic buildings offer Rolex watches and Louis Vitton handbags. Yawn! Long queues of tourists (like us) shuffle along crowed streets, all snapping the same photos and selfies. Over priced food and drink are on offer everywhere. Clearly, loads of people were having loads of fun in a magical place. We very much enjoyed the hour we spent sightseeing. But an hour was enough. We happily moved on to our camp for the night. 

  

Day 53: Thursday (10/2/2025). Dilemma. Grindlewald is home to the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau, famous mountains steeped in climbing lore. It would likely take two days of very hard riding to reach there. Current weather calls for two days of good weather. After that, three days of rain and snow. Solution: Three trains and half day of travel brought us to Grindlewald. A bonus of train travel was the pleasant company of a Swiss couple. They bought a day pass for the train, and were doing a huge, activity filled loop around their country – all in one day. 

By noon, we were camped at the base of the Eiger. With blue bird skies. Unbelievable! We briefly pondered taking the gondola up to the Eiger glacier, but the $100/person price tag put us off. Instead, our fast forward  gave us time to climb high up the surrounding hills to a point looking directly across at the Ogre. Cheaper, and much more satisfying.  

Day 54: Friday (10/3/2025). Slushy water bottles and hard frost this morning. That’s our sign to head lower before the storm (and snow) come calling later today.   

Traveling is its own reward and fills our hearts. Meeting other travelers makes our hearts soar. Dane’ and Louw are on holiday from South Africa. With their rental car, they are camping and day hiking their way across the alps. Their enthusiasm for life was infectious. A simple inquiry led to a lively exchange about places we’ve been, places we’d like to go, and adventures we’ve had.   Dane’ and Louw were adamant! We must come to South Africa! Perhaps the universe is telling us something. In recent weeks, this is the third time we’ve been given a South Africa sales pitch. Well – why not? Of course, we did sing the praises of our little corner of Colorado. Like many of our other new friends, hopefully our paths will cross again.

Day 55: Saturday (10/4/2025). It was an easy (beautiful) fifteen miles downhill to Interlaken yesterday. After some overnight rain, we had a window of clear weather in the morning. We took full advantage. Without packs we took a relaxing ten mile ride along the Brienzersee. Later, we took a bench and watched as a steady stream of tourist carrying paragliders landed in a large green space in the heart of Interlaken.

One month ago Interlaken was home to the Jungfrau marathon. The route left Interlaken, ascended some 6,000 feet and ended at the Eiger glacier twenty-six miles later. OK! For those with slightly lower aspirations, there was the “Harder Run Race.” This trail race ascended 2,400 vertical feet over a very rough 4.4 kilometer trail system to the Harder Kulm overlook above the city. Just by chance, I found myself on this trail. I felt good and was rather proud of my time. The race web site, however, said that my time was the cut-off time for the slowest runners. Hmmm. Thanks for keeping me humble. 

We ended the day, once again warm and dry as waves of rain washed over the city. Higher up, snow was accumulating on the peaks and ridges. We chose…wisely! Thus ends our week in the alps. Until next time – STC!