Day 6: Jungfraujoch

Thursday

Esther prepared breakfast for us. Through the windows beside the table we could see that the clouds were breaking and the tops of the peaks were beginning to appear. They were magnificent. In Gimmewald, perched on the cliffs, one feels as though he is in a castle in the air hovering above the valley in the midst of the mountains.

We and our new comrades decided it would be the perfect chance to take the Jungfraujoch (yoong-frau-yohchh), a cog railroad that burrows through the bowels of the infamous Eiger to a high saddle between it and the Jungfrau. This was the one mountain I had been waiting to see for many years.

I am not a climber, but I do read a bit of climbing literature, probably vicariously experiencing what I could never attempt to do in real life. Several years ago I read Jon Krakauer’s essay, “Eiger Dreams”, where he recounts his failed attempt to climb the peak. Forgive me (Mr. Krakauer and readers alike), but I must share a few quotes. Although I didn’t have them in front of me, their memory lingered in my mind as we rode to the top.

“The dust jackets of books with titles such as Eiger: Wall of Death, remind us that the Nordwand [the north face of the Eiger] ‘has defeated hundreds and killed forty-four… Those who fell were found—sometimes years later—dessicated and dismembered…’”

“The names of the landmarks on the face—the Hinterstoisser Traverse, the Ice Hose, the Death Bivouac, the White Spider—are household words among both active and armchair alpinists from Tokyo to Buenos Aires; the very mention of these places is enough to make any climber’s hands turn clammy.”

“The rockfall and avalances that rain continuously down the Nordwand are legendary. So is the heavy weather: Even when the skies over the rest of Europe are cloudless, violent storms brew over the Eiger, like those dark clouds that hover eternally above Transylvanian castles in vampire movies.”

The ride up was amazing, the weather beautiful, the views absolutely unparalleled. Soon, however, we indeed experienced the “heavy weather”. The train stopped at an intermediary station so that the passengers could disembark and look through a series of enormous windows to see the views from the Nordwand of the Eiger. The clouds and snow were so thick, we only caught passing glimpses of the terrible, frightening beauty of it. There is quite a complex of buildings at the top, one of them being the Sphynx Observatory, a platform where one can look out at the vista. Unfortunately, it was snowing and so foggy, we only managed to see bits and pieces at a time.

After several hours, we decided to head back. The four of us rode back together as well, but got disconnected somewhere around Wengen or Kleine Scheidegg. Jared and I arrived in Lauterbrunnen and ate dinner at the Hotel Oberland, where we had delicious roestli and raclette. Strangely enough, our traveling companions were eating at another table and came over to say hello. After dinner, the four of us tried to catch the bus to Stechelberg to take the lift to Gimmewald. Unfortunately, we missed the last one of the night. After some debate, we decided to split taxi fare and try to catch the next lift in 15 minutes. Miraculously we made it (although the fare was 30 franks!) and, after arriving in Gimmewald, settled into our rooms for a warmer, drier, reflective evening.




From halfway down the lift from Grutschalp to Lauterbrunnen. That morning, we walked to Murren from Gimmelwald, took a 15 minute train to Grutschalp, then took this lift to Lauterbrunnen, where we boarded another train for Kleine Scheidegg and the cog railroad. Sounds like it took longer than it actually did.






Some of the mountains above Lauterbrunnen as the sky began to clear.






The clouds cleared enough to see some of the beautiful peaks up the Lauterbrunnen Valley. You can almost see Stechelberg in the distance. Gimmewald is up the valley and high on the cliff to the right, but it can't be seen in this photo.






The Eiger/Jungfrau massif just before boarding the cog railroad from Kleine Sheidegg.






At the intermediary station on the cog railroad. The windows overlooked the view from the Nordwand and here is one of many crevasses. I just thought it was kind of pretty (in a frightening sort of way).






Another view through the glass near the observatory.






This is the Sphynx Observatory. Fog and snow prevented good views, but from time to time, things opened up a little...






The very thought of climbing this gives me vertigo. I freak out at Class 3 scrambling.






A view of the glacial valley (the longest glacier in Europe).






A rare clearing from the Sphynx Observatory






We went through an ice cave with sculptures, etc. Here is the initial hallway to the "gallery".






Jared and our new friends indulging me in a "jump shot" on the Sphynx Observatory. Esther lent Dylan the crazy sunglasses and he never heard the end of it.






The Hotel Oberland, back in Lauterbrunnen, where we had dinner that night.