Day #4: Understanding Cowulture ~ Hike from Grindelwald to Wengen

Day #3 Understanding Cowulture ~ Hike from Grindelwald to Wengen (Thursday)

Anna tells me this is the best breakfast of our whole trip and I think I agree. There is an amazing selection of cheeses, hard boiled and scrambled eggs, granolas, fruits and juices, fresh croissants, home made jams and honey, and amazing breads. I eat much more than my usual granola with the hope this will provide the fuel I need for the ascent ahead of us. We take the train partially up the mountain to Alpighen where we begin the hike uphill. Anna presents the choice I must make between the Eiger Trail which is very steep with amazing views and another somewhat less steep ascent with less dramatic views. While I try to talk myself into the Eiger Trail I know I would be grunting. Anna is worried when I grunt and asks if I should stop. I explain to her that my grunts are like the tennis player Novak Djorkovic who recently won his 5^th Wimbledon. He grunts every time he hits the ball. I tell her that my grunts don’t mean I am defeated but am slamming the ball home. She replies that my grunts don’t sound so hopeful or aggressive!  Clearly I need to work on my tone. I decide on the less dramatic ascent route but don't promise less grunting! 

On this trail it is a 450 feet elevation gain for 2 hours in hot sun.  We stop for an  energy boost with meringues and to wash our faces in cold river water. Zach has put a surprise bag of dinosaur gummy bears in my pack and Anna offers these to me as courage candy. I confess to using these liberally.  We reach Kleine Scheideggand then take a train to reach Eiger Station and EigerGlacier restaurant. This is the last stop before the train to “top of the world.” Eiger mountain top is at 12000 feet. Most tourists take the train to the top to walk on the glacier and we see that the train is packed not with hikers but with those going up for the views. Did you know trains could go to the top of a mountain? How amazing and Bond-like is that? 

During lunch on the deck at Eigerglacier restaurant we watch hikers trudging up a very narrow trail which is surrounded by the Eiger, Jungfrau, and Wetherhorn mountains. The feeling of expanse of these mountain surroundings is almost overwhelming;  nature seems so close as we listen to glaciers calving and worry about environmental warming and its effect on water supply.  We decide to hike down on one of the scariest and narrowest trails yet with the most spectacular views I have ever seen. Either side of the trail is straight down and although I don’t have height issues I do find this makes me dizzy. I carefully use my poles and love the challenge but mostly watch my steps rather than looking at the view as I walk. 

I stop to view the amazing rock and glacier formations. There are numerous waterfalls coming down from the mountains.  I am reassured by the cows on the hillside looking relaxed and the bell symphony. I wonder if they ever fall off the edge?

Descent Trail

We stop in a beautiful alpine meadow for a dinosaur gummy for courage snack and can see Wengen below us in the distance. 

We pass a dairy farm with cow bells hanging from the roof and arrive at Wengernalp, a train station located between Wengen and Kleine Scheidegg and take the train to Wengen. I do believe this is the most beautiful hike yet. Have I said that before?



 

We stay at Belvedere Hotel, again having a room with amazing views of the mountains and following our pre dinner deck habit of wine, beer and cheese. 

Belvedere hotel deck

During our restaurant deck dinner of risotto and salad a marching band of people dressed in Swiss traditional attire and banging huge cow bells pass by. Later we listen to a man playing a traditional Swiss horn and head back to our hotel to research more about the cows we are falling in love with. Anna is also tutoring me on Instagram and mapping via I-phone and often has small tests for me to see if I am learning anything! 

Cows ~ Why are these cows up this high on the mountains? Why are they wearing cow bells?
Watching the cows graze on these steep hillsides we have wondered if they ever fall off the edge? Our internet search reveals they do have hiking accidents at these higher elevations and fall off cliffs and this is why farmers put up fences. To our amazement we discover these cows only come up here this high for the summer months for 100 days for vacation!  The farmers believe that at these higher elevations there is greater variety in grass food and herbs which leads to better cheese. During these summer months a team of cheese makers is hired to make the fresh cheese right away after milking the cows.





Apparently there is strong interest in keeping this summer cow high grazing and cheese making tradition in the high Alps alive in Switzerland. The government encourages this centuries-old tradition by subsidizing this cowuture ($412 per cow).  Despite the fact the cheese makers work 14-hour days from 5 am all day 7 days a week and they are not paid well, we are told they like the life style and many Swiss dream of a summer on the “Alp” milking cows and making cheese. 

There are about 500,000 cows marched from their valley farms at the start of every summer for their vacation in the Alps. In Switzerland there is 1 cow for every 5 people and most cows have names such as Bella, Brianca etc   In US there are more guns than people. Perhaps cows could be offered as an alternative money making plan?  The fresh cheese from these grazing cows is called alpkase and is said to be richer in omega-3 fatty acids. According to the Swiss Association of Alpine Farms, around 4,000 tons of Alp cheese is produced every year. 

The cow bells which can cost as much as $1000 are only put on the cows for the summer months apparently as a way to ward off predators and keep track of where the cows are. There are some researchers contesting the use of these bells saying they lead to hearing loss and cause cows to chew less.  I find out that the cows return home at the end of their summer vacation via the cable cars!