Andechs Bier-Monastery, Garmisch and the Zugspitze

Today we took the long awaited trip to the Andechs Monastery. This is the place Gordon described in his blog, and we were looking forward to it.


We caught a train from Munich into the countryside, got of at a small town and soon found the signs pointing the way! We followed a trail through town and up into the hills and the woods and finally arriving at the monastery. It's quite a busy place, and the weather was really quite nice, so lot's of people were there. We got some food and tried the famous appelweiss bier. The beer is really fine, and the food was pretty good. The Monastery is right next to a small village which lies on the side of the hill opposite of the town we arrived at. Lots of people drive or ride bikes and motorcycles here.


We headed back to town and caught the train back to Muenchen, we had dinner at another brauhaus, then up to the hotel for some cards with Gordon at our room.

  View from the Biergarden.

Day 3 in Germany dawned sunny and dry! It was definitely time to go to the mountains. Gordon joined us, and we all caught the train to Garmisch. It was about a 1 1/2 hour ride, going through some very pretty rural countryside. We were surprised how much open land is out there. Lots of agriculture still goes on in Germany.


We arrived at Garmisch and had to wait for the bus to Eibsee, about 30 minutes. Wandering around, I spotted a souvenir shop displaying the Tyrolian hat I'd been wanting, so I went in and asked how much. The salesman told me the amount, but I couldn't understand, I thought he said 70 rather than 17...I told Gordon about it a little later and he thought 70 was a bit much, so he went in and asked again, and he got the correct price and I got a hat! So much for my German!


We were soon on the bus. This bus winds through several tiny villages on a very narrow road. A funny thing happened on this ride. A passenger, an old lady, had some sort of disagreement with the driver. At her stop, she was talking with him when all of a sudden, she blurted out, in English, "I don't care! You're a son of a bitch!" Too funny, we a laughed about that one.


My original plan called for a cable car ride up to the top of the Zugspitze, then a long trek back down to Garmisch. This is the hike described in the Lonely Planet Guide book. Unfortunately, due to the conditions caused by the long rain and snow seasons this year, this walk was not possible. There was several meters of snow blocking the trail at this time. Besides, a fellow next to us said we would have to start very early, more like 6 to 8 a.m, rather than 11!


Oh well. We decided to get the round trip pass and go up the cable car and down the cog wheel train. The cable car ride was a spectacular one, rising several thousand feet in just a few ear-popping moments.

On the Zugspitze

Upon exiting the cable car, you enter a huge complex of shops and bier gardens on the top of the mountain! It's surprising how developed this spot is! The view is amazing, of course. We enjoyed a bier and a light lunch and wandered around, then took another cable car to the Schonn Alpin. This is the terminus for the cog-wheel train which runs all the way back to Garmisch. It's also the base for several ski lifts. Many years ago I came here for skiing. There is a small chapel erected up here as well.


After we had explored this area a while, we got in line for the cog-wheel train and headed down, It's a pretty steep drop...and much of the first stretch is tunneled through the mountain. Eventually it comes out and you are back in the trees down to the Eibsee. A while later, and you're back in town.


We still had plenty of time, so I proposed a walk to the Olympic Stadium which would have been the terminus for our hike had we trekked down from the Zugspitze.


It was an easy walk to the site, which is still used by the German Team. There are 3 ski jumps, although I think only 2 are used. One is huge and very modern looking, another is smaller but looks functional, and the last is much smaller and looks like its falling apart. Behind the stadium is a popular hiking trail which goes to the Partlaklamm Gorge. We walked up to the toll gate. If we have the time, I'd like to come back and visit this. We'll see.


Shelly and Gordon (yeah we are such whiners!) were starting to complain about walking so it was time to head back and get dinner. We wandered through town a bit before we came to a nice Italian place.  After dinner, it was back to the train station and back home to Muenchen. It was late but we caught the tram and our return to the hotel was uneventful.