Murren, Switzerland. Cables, Trams and Trains
Jul 25, 2023
July 25- August 1, 2023
12 years ago, Jansen met a wonderfully kind and intelligent man named Beat who lives in SLC but grew up in Murren, Switzerland. Beat has built 3 chalets on his land in Switzerland and he invited us to stay at his chalets. In exchange, Jansen helped him with his website, https://www.chaletsnowbird.com
After 12 years, we finally made it! We were so lucky with timing as well. Beat and Nancy with their 2 daughters, Erica and Heidi, along with their 3 children, Adde, Lucas and Lilly stayed in Upper Snowbird and we stayed in Lower Snowbird.
Our families easily blended into one big family. Switzerland not only offered a new group of friends, but exciting scenery with the Eiger looming out of our window the entire time and delightful fields rich with flowers, cows, sheep, bugs, lakes.....
The cheese was the best in Europe. The wine was shockingly fabulous. And you definitely do not want to check your cholesterol levels after living there for a few weeks.
Murren Via Ferrata
We all embarked on the local Via Ferrata known for its massive swinging bridge and steep overlook.
The entrance is a small tunnel.
This Via Ferrata was unique. There was a LOT of hiking on it and it was quite wet
We saw Ibex from the distance.
Now it gets steep
This girl has no fear. The bridge behind her is wide enough for 2 feet side by side. It has limited railing to hold onto with your hands, it sways and bounces and it is > 2000 feet above ground! She just moseyed over it and even took the time to check in with her mom, who was not moseying.
North Face Trail, Murren
A game of Giant Chess before starting the hike on a rainy day. Fisher is a chess master and the kids really took to it.
Along the way, we debated if the lines were really going to shock us. Some of us found out....
Cow, sheep, or person?!? It is definitely the tombstone I want, just not anytime soon.
Along the way, we had a mixture of trail, road and wide pavement trail. Murren is home to many paragliders, base jumpers and wing suits.
Allmendhubel, The Best Playground in the World.
The outside of Caldea SPA
The flower maze that sprays water
And the best part of the playground, the restaurant overlooks it. So in true European style, we hiked, played and ate delicious warm food prepared by someone other than myself. Oh and we drank beer!
Beautiful Murren home on our way back after hiking.
Jungfraujoch - The Top of Europe
We looked up the Jungraujoch, https://www.jungfraujochtickets.com. It looked cheesy, and sure enough, it was. But in a fun, good way that offered some exceptional experiences with kiddos. We walked through a glacier, pretended to make chocolate and stood just below the peak of Jungfrau.
Train rides all day!
Looking over Lauterbrunnen
The train takes you though the mountain and when you arrive, you are at the top of Aletsch glacier, 3,454m above sea level.
Ice Palace - Caves carved through the glacier with sculptures to boot
Can you guess who we found! He will likely thaw again soon.
This one is for Miss Judy Lou
Sphinx highway - a memorabilia for the miners who made it possible
Finally we arrived at the Lindt Store.
It was a strange store to have at the top of a glacier, but the Swiss do love their chocolate. And there is never a bad time for chocolate.
I told him I liked white chocolate
Saraya clearly made the better choice
Churning the chocolate
Fisher got the boot too. He did not buy his mom any chocolate.
Back in Lauterbrunnen, checking out bike shops