Kranzberg hike and X-C

Ayelet and Tamar wanted to try cross-country skiing, so I took them to Leutasch for a morning. Most of the snow was gone - what had been the parking lot where Barbara and I parked was now closed and being used for agricultural purposes - it was a field again! But the good news is that we parked in a real parking lot for free, and there was also no charge for using the trails - what was left of them that is. Anyway, for our purposes it was fine. There was a little bit of snow left on the loipe. Ayelet picked it up pretty well by the end and said it was a fantastic experience. Tamar and I got good exercise and were tired by noon.

Meanwhile, Erica and Garth wanted to do a longer hike, so Jim took them to Mittenwald, and we agreed to meet up at the top of the Kranzberg for lunch. They hiked around the lakes in Mittenwald and then up the mountain. Tamar, Ayelet and I drove to the Kranzberg lift, which turned out to be a funky old single chair lift. I think Ayelet and Tamar found it pretty exciting. From the top of the chair, we hiked up to the summit. The photos are of the views from the walk, which were spectacular. The recent snow and the surrounding mountains, especially the Karwendel, made for gorgeous scenery. We were hiking in snow too, although the path was quite good. I took 100 photos!

The others had already reached the Kranzberg Gipfel Haus and finished their lunches by the time we got there. But they hung out with us while we ate lunch - Tamar and I both had "Leberkäse" (which is neither liver nor cheese). The proprietor had two very cute little daughters and Ayelet had fun talking to them in the little English they knew. Ayelet thought it was pretty great that we were hiking in Germany. Like Brendan, she got a kick out of having visited three countries this trip.

"Erika" flowers (heather) were in bloom along the way, even in the snow. Later, I played the German "Erika" song, about the flower and the girl, for Erica and printed out the lyrics and the translation for her. I really like the song, I know it as an old German folksong. Although when I found it on the web, it was listed under WWII marching songs. I think it became a favorite song of the German soldiers in WWII.





Last night we went to a Tyrolean folk evening at the Igls Fire House. It was pretty great. There was a dance troupe of men and women in their folk costumes, doing traditional dances, including of course, the Schuhplattler. The men were very good - I think the best Schuhplattlers I have ever seen. Garth said he wished he had been born Tyrolean so he could wear Lederhosen and do it too! Garth was chosen by one of the young lady dancers to learn a folk dance with her and he did very well. He was rewarded with a shot glass of Obstler schnapps. The musicians were alds very good, including a handsome 17-year old accordion player who was amazing. And there was a woman singer, Anni from Vadiz, who yodeled. We were pretty impressed by what she could do with her voice.