Swiss Heartland Untour, Spring 2005
by Doris & Bob Miller, Kingsport, TN
This was our eleventh, and probably last, visit to Switzerland. The first three were private tours with the last eight being Untours. We decided that this time we would like to stay with our good friends, Berit and Albert Greutert, in Sachseln, but by the time we got organized, only slots in mid-May and mid-September were available. We elected to take the mid-May slot.
Since direct flights to Zurich aren’t available out of our TriCities, TN airport, we needed to get to a suitable gateway city. This was Dulles Airport in Washington, DC, because we have children living only 20 minutes from this airport. We could both leave our car with them and spend the previous night there. This we did.
May 17
Son Henry and family got us to Dulles two hours before the scheduled departure time of our United Flt. 936 (a Boeing 767) at 5:50PM. The security line was nearly 200 feet long, so we needed all of the time to get cleared. Our flight took off on time and quickly climbed to a cruising altitude of 33,000 feet. Tail winds ranged from 40-109 MPH which, added to our air speed 515 MPH, gave us a ground speed of 555-622 MPH.May 18
We landed at the Zurich Airport slightly ahead of schedule at 7:37AM local time. This airport gets larger and more complex every time we visit it, but signage was good and we quickly found the Idyll representatives. We located Joan and Bruce Herriges who are staying in another Greutert apartment and rode with them on the train to Sachseln. The Greuterts met us at the station and took us on a short sight seeing drive to the apartments. Among the provisions awaiting us was a home baked loaf of fresh bread made by Berit. We got in a two hour nap before going to the Bahnhof Restaurant for dinner. To bed early for more sleep.May 19
Orientation was scheduled for today in nearby Meiringen. Because of changes in railroad operations, through trains no longer stop at Sachseln, and the station is now unmanned. Accordingly, we took the 8:13 local to Giswil (about 5 miles away) to transfer to a through train to Meiringen. Drat! Orientation was led by Franzi Schopfer and Jessica Powers. Afterwards we had lunch at the Victoria Restaurant where we were joined by Mary Carney and her grand daughter, Amanda Carney. That evening we, along with Joan and Bruce Herriges and Vance Roy, were invited to dinner with the Greuterts. Albert had made some of his specialties, three versions of spaghetti. The first round was prepared with a bologna sauce while the second had a mushroom sauce. A version with a third sauce was available, but no one had room for more. Dessert was a meringue topped with ice cream and fresh strawberries. A delicious meal with delightful company.
May 20
Today we decided to go on a hike with the Herriges. We took the train to Hergiswil where we transferred to another train to Dallenwil on the route toward Engelberg. There we took a 4 passenger lift up to an area called Wiesenberg. From there we hiked with some up and down about three miles over to another lift station at Wirzweli. Had lunch at the station. Saw several paragliders wheeling about in the valley below us. Returned to Sachseln by reverse route.May 21
Among other things, we had grits for breakfast. We had brought the grits with us. Took the train to Meiringen and inquired at the Tourist Bureau about the location of the Fortress Festival scheduled that day in Meiringen. The route took us out past the lower terminus of the Reuti gondola to the location of a fortress which dated from 1250 AD. Only the outer stone walls of the fortress remain. Sturdy steel stairs had been erected inside the walls to allow visitors to go to the top (about 50 feet high). Interpreters in period costume were there to answer questions.Food (some cooked over an open fire) was on sale, so we had lunch of bratwurst, bread and cheese. Games were available for the children- cross bow archery, jousting with a wheel mounted wooden horse and sword dueling. (Our Consumer Product Safety Commission would drop dead at the thought of real sword dueling.) When we got back to the train station to start home, we saw one of the brand new commuter trains getting ready to leave for Interlaken Ost. Since we had time, we got aboard and took the round trip to Interlaken Ost. It was quiet, smooth running and air conditioned. Very nice. After dinner of lasagne and salad, we visited the Herriges apartment for coffee and cookies.
May 22
Today was our 62nd wedding anniversary so we decided to go to the Grand Hotel at Giessbach Falls across the lake from Brienz, but we reckoned not with the spring boat schedule. An 11:30 departure was listed, but we learned that it didn’t start until June 1. The next boat was too late, so we just found a restaurant in Brienz and dined there. That evening the Greuterts invited us up to dinner to celebrate our anniversary and the birthday of Barbara Roy who lives with husband Vance in another Greutert apartment. We had bratwurst, rosti and a vegetable salad. For dessert, Berit had made a cake honoring Barbara and us. Wine and liqueurs were also served. We all had a great time chatting until 9:00PM.May 23
Rainy. We got an early start by taking the 7:13 train to Thun where we met Agnes Moser who was taking the Oberland group on a cheese making trip. Since the cows had not yet been taken up to the high meadows, mountain cheese making wasn’t available. We went instead by bus to Blumensein where there is a moderate sized establishment making Emmental cheese (the kind with holes) for 28 local farmers. The young manager proudly gave us a thorough tour of his facilities. The wheels of cheese were about 30 inches in diameter, six inches thick and were so heavy they had to be handled by machinery. The finished wheels are aged a minimum of four months before marketing. We also saw butter being made and packaged. There was a shop at the end of the tour where we could buy cheese, butter and other items.Later in the day we visited the Sarner Crystal plant at Uetendorf. Unfortunately, they were not working glass on Monday, but we did get to see and buy some of their lovely wares.
This was the evening for our group "final" dinner. It had to be held a week early because the restaurant where it was to be staged was not available the following week. Instead of trying to hurry back to Sachseln and then go to the dinner at Reuti, Agnes Moser had invited us to drive over directly from Thun with her and her husband Rudolf. This was much more convenient and we got to see some territory we had not previously seen. The dinner was at the Gletscherblick Hotel near Goldern. The menu was pork, escalloped potatoes, carrots, cauliflower and a green salad. We finished with ice cream and coffee. En route home on the train from Brunig Pass, we weren’t looking forward to waiting in Giswil for 35 minutes for the local to Sachseln, so we jokingly complained to the conductor. Without saying anything to us, he called ahead and got special permission to stop the through train briefly in Sachseln so we didn’t have to make the transfer.
May 24
This was mostly a day of rest. Doris used Berit’s washing machine to do some laundry and I borrowed Vance Roy’s computer to send some e-mail messages. In the evening, Albert took me to a meeting of his Lions Club. The group first met in an office building near Dallenwil and then move to the Winkelried Hotel in Stans where we had an elegant dinner of chicken or fish, rosti, salad and coffee.May 25
Although we had been to Switzerland many times, we had never visited the falls of the Rhine and decided to do so today. The Dream Book indicated that Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall was the best place to view the falls, so that’s where we headed. Our train trip required changes in Luzern, Zurich and Winterthur. We arrived about noon and first had lunch on a shady outdoor terrace of the castle above the falls. The falls were spectacular with huge volumes of water pouring over them. For the best view, it was necessary to go down long flights of steps. I went to the bottom but Doris settled for half way down. We returned to Sachseln by the reverse route.May 26
Our plan today was to re-visit Kandesteg where we had stayed on three previous Untours, but we ran afoul of the revised train operations. When we got to the Sachseln station, we found that we had just missed the local trail to Giswil. Consulting the schedule, it seemed that we could back track to Sarnen and there catch the south bound through train. Alas, the south train was there when we arrived, but before we could get off and make our way to the other track, it pulled out. Since the next south bound train would run an hour later, we tried to go to Migros to shop, but it was Corpus Christi day and everything in this heavily Catholic area (including Migros) was closed. Hearing some music, we followed the sound several blocks to find a Catholic mass in session in the street outside the church. It included a brass band and good singing both by the choir and the congregation.Finally got our south bound train and made good connections to Spiez. It was already noon so we had lunch at the bahnhof restaurant. The next train south toward Kandersteg left soon after, but we discovered to our dismay that it was an express and didn’t stop in Kandersteg. Accordingly, we abandoned our plans to visit Kandersteg and started home. Having never spent any time in Interlaken West, we got off there and did some strolling and shopping. Later as we waited for our train, we looked up and saw 13 paragliders and 2 hang glides lazily circling far overhead. It was an awesome sight.
May 27
Today we went to Murren. Had train changes at Giswil and Interlaken Ost. The train to Lauterbrunnen was new, modern and much more comfortable than the ones we used to ride. It was also crowded, and some passengers even had to stand. The crowd surged across the street to catch the funicular car up to Grutschalp. We managed to get on the second car up after a wait of only 20 minutes. From there we took the single car "Toonerville Trolley" on a short four mile ride over to Murren. Had lunch at an outdoor restaurant overlooking the 1200 foot deep Lauterbrunnen valley. After a leisurely stroll to the western edge of Murren, there was a two stage gondola ride down to Stechelberg in the valley below. We hiked along the flat valley floor with soaring cliffs and many waterfalls on each side to Trummelbach Falls where we caught the bus back to Lauterbrunnen to start our return home trip.May 28
Today we went to Luzern to sight see and also reconfirm our flight home at the United office. As a lark, we selected a bus at random and rode it to the end of the line and back to down town. (Such rides are covered by our Swiss transportation pass.) It was an interesting adventure.Then strolled across the famous Chapel Bridge to the old town and found that a farmers market was in progress. Bought a loaf of macadamia nut bread and some fresh asparagus. Next we had lunch in a river side restaurant before doing more strolling and shopping. Varying our return route, we took a lake steamer from Luzern to Alpnachstad. The steamer stopped at seven docks along the relaxing one hour forty five minute cruise. Caught the through train from Alpnachstad to Sarnen where it was necessary to transfer to the local to Sachseln. The wait gave us time to go to Migros and buy a rotisserie chicken and rosti for dinner. After dinner Albert invited us up to their patio to visit until about 9:00PM.
May 29
Today the Greuterts had invited us and the Herriges to go on a day long drive through countryside we would not otherwise have seen. The route was north through Sarnen and Luzern where we began to take little traveled back roads. These lead along the Reuss River through lush countryside with immaculately neat fields. By noon we had reached Bremgarten where we took a short walk on tree shaded lanes along the river. Had lunch at the riverside Bijou Restaurant. A low weir across the river made a short waterfall where many kayakers were practicing their skills.Return to Sachseln was by an alternate routs through green rolling hills. Along the way we stopped at a chapel commemorating the defeat of the Austrians by the Swiss in the 1300s. Hero of the battle was Winkelried who grasped many Austrian lances into his chest and provided a gap which led to a Swiss victory. It was a lovely outing.
May 30
It was our plan to take the 9:13 train to Brunig Pass and hike back down to Lungern. Alas, I didn’t read the schedule carefully enough. This train runs only on Saturday and Sunday.Seeing that the next through train went through Giswil at 10:31, we thought we could walk there before that time. Instead of an hour, it took us 90 minutes to make the hike, so we missed that train too. By the time the next train went through, it was too late for the hike so instead we took the bus from Brunig Pass to Reuti and had lunch at the Victoria Hotel. The old Victoria Hotel we had known in 1986 had been razed and replaced with a modern structure which in our opinion was not as attractive.
In the afternoon we completed most of our packing, and Albert Greutert hauled us over to Sarnen so our two heavy bags could be forwarded to Zurich Airport and not be a burden tomorrow. We used to be able to check such baggage all the way through to our destination in the U. S., but new security regulations no longer permit this.
May 31
Today, our last day, we decided to re-visit Engleberg where we had stayed on two previous walking tours in the 1980s. The first leg of the trip was to Hergiswil where we transferred to another train to Engelberg. The early part of the journey was on fairly flat terrain, but as we neared Engelberg, a steep climb (30-35 percent) began. It was surprisingly cool at Engelberg. We had thought of trying to have lunch at the Edelweiss Hotel where we had stayed in the 80s but learned that they only catered to their own guests. Instead we had a picnic in a city park. We got back to Sachseln by 2:00PM and finished our packing. Then strolled over to visit the Britschgi family where two of our children and their families had stayed during our 2003 Untour. Had a very pleasant visit with Frau Britschgi and her daughter, Dorothea. Not wanting to cook on our last night, we went to the Zum Stein Restaurant for dinner. Finished packing and got to bed by 10:00.June 1
Departure day. Albert was ready at 7:00AM to transport us to Sarnen where we could catch the through train to Luzern. We were pleased and honored to have Berit, daughter Elisabeth, Joan and Bruce Herriges and Vance Roy all out at this early hour to see us off. At Luzern we caught a double-decker express train straight through to the Zurich Airport. It was fast, quiet, smooth running and air conditioned. At the airport we retrieved our checked bags and then had to stand in line for a long time to get our tickets checked and then again to get our bags checked. Our United flight initially cruised at 32,000 feet where there was 35 MPH head wind, but by climbing to 38,000 feet there was no head wind. Despite a 15 minute late take off, we arrived at Dulles 15 minutes early. Son Henry met us there and took us to his home where we spent the night. Drove the 375 miles home to Kingsport the next day, mostly through steady rain.Another Swiss Untour is in the books.