Like A Fairytale

I wrote this recount of a trip to Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland, about 2 years ago on a bus throughout Europe, however thought maybe I should share it on here now 🙂 Hope you enjoy reading!

Winding our way through stretches of the scenic French countryside and finally entering the Swiss Alpine region, I was rendered speechless by our first sights; the rolling bliss and flat plains that had been the majority of our journey’s terrain thus far, stretched themselves out and rose higher into the atmosphere, leaving us with breathtaking mountain ranges, small fairytale villages tucked into the valleys between them, flowing rivers and lush green trees surrounding us. As twilight approached, we were treated to a dazzling array of colours and reflections that danced upon the surface of Lake Thun from the recent sunset.

I have always dreamt of finding a perfect fairytale village; I found that in Lauterbrunnen.

It was truly a magical feeling stepping out into the refreshing, cool summer air in the twilight, to be standing amidst looming mountains (some snow-capped off in the distance from the majestic Jungfraujoch – the highest point in Europe), waterfalls galore, and quaint village houses along with wooden cabins dotted around in unordered sequences. The enchanting mist that hung delicately above us, having descended down from the mountains, created an utterly mystical setting, making Lauterbrunnen therefore nothing short of a fairytale village.

Waking up the following morning felt like a dream; stepping out of a wooden cabin straight into the crisp but not too cold morning air, to look around and see the sun shining, majestic waterfalls flowing down the mountains which stood tall and proud, a charming church peering through the clearing mist, and a whimsical stream coursing through the town, with the sound of cheerful birds chirping as they flew around not too far away.

After a brief yet scenic meander through the charming town, it was back to the cabin for our hiking boots and off to the mountains!

Our adventure through the Swiss Alps began as a serene stroll through the countryside with the sun shining and the sound of friendly cowbells ringing in the distance. We made our way along the pleasant pathway leading us through the remarkable countryside, passing by the occasional wooden cabin positioned upon the hills beside the path, and patches of the most beautiful flowers in each and every colour stretching for miles along the hillside. As we journeyed deeper into the Swiss countryside, the trees began to gather, and we found ourselves surrounded by a dense canopy of greenery, with the sound of rushing water filling our ears from the nearby stream that had carried the icy water down from the mountain tops via the waterfalls.  Retiring form the forest, we found ourselves back again in the open, and now faced with the steep climb up to Gimmelwald…

Exhausted, and still with half the mountain yet to go, we reached a view too unfathomable for words. Never have I fully understood how something can literally “take your breath away” until this point. We had almost reached the top of the world…well it felt like it. From this high up we could see the snowy peaks across the valley growing larger through the mist that we were now at the level of, and could feel the refreshingly cold air from the snow upon our skin. As we walked toward the edge and looked down, we could see the tiny town of Lauterbrunnen and the small towns surrounding it in the distance, reminiscent of a toy village.

After a few minutes of sitting and taking it all in and yodelling (well, trying) across the mountain range, we pulled ourselves up and set off once again on the last leg of our upward hike.

Upon finally reaching the town of Gimmelwald, it was peaceful, deserted and beautiful; both the town itself and the views, and reminded me of some sort of a Christmas village (maybe I watched too many Christmas films as a child?!) But I think it’s simply because the houses and shops up there seemed to resemble decorated gingerbread houses and we were surrounded by snowy mountains!

The last stretch of our hike (back to the campsite), was by far the easiest…flat all the way to Grutschalp where we caught the cable car back down the mountain to Lauterbrunnen. Although my camera battery very sadly decided to give up on our walk back, I still have the stunning scenic memories held in mind of the little toy towns way down below us, the lonely woodchopper’s cabin high up in the mountains, many more fields of grazing cattle with their ringing bells once again creating the only sound throughout the tranquil mountain range, and waterfalls in every direction we looked.

To wind up our long, exhausting day (we found out later we actually hiked to the other side of the valley and back which ended up to be nearly 14km), we made our way back to the campsite for a much needed hearty dinner… only to find out we had missed the group dinner and that everyone thought we had been devoured by a bear atop the mountains!

Eventually we were served our dinner with a later group of travellers who we ended up befriending, and planned our nightly adventure…climbing a waterfall! Whilst our original group’s idea of a fabulous night consisted of seeing how much alcohol one could consume and how big a tower that could make with the empty cans, we had other plans and crept off into the night to find the waterfall that we had been admiring ever since we arrived in the town. What a magical feeling it was, to climb up the rickety stairs amidst a cave in the darkness, hearing the rush of water coming from above and to finally step out onto a landing partway up the mountainside right behind an actual waterfall. As we stood there in the darkness, the only light being the one shining through the crashing water from below, lighting up the waterfall for the townspeople to admire, I realised how truly magical this place is…

And with that said, I am already planning my next trip back to explore more of the valley and its surroundings, and to hopefully reach Jungfraujoch this time …the snowy peaks, the highest point in Europe!

Mel xx