The Hills Are Alive...

A visit to Mayrhofen, Austria last week was a breath of fresh air in more ways than one. The area is simply beautiful and the views are stunning. It was so refreshing to go to a place with no litter, no vandalism and no graffiti! Our first day there we visited the Hintertux Glacier and after essential refreshment, walked down from the bottom cable car station back to the village. It was magical, as we walked down through the pastures, listening to the tinkling bells round the necks of the grazing cows.

On Thursday we had heavy overnight rains and the streams and rivers were in full force. There are some magnificent waterfalls all around these mountains. Above 1500 meters the rain turned to snow, with a covering of approx 150mm. It transformed the views all around, with many of the local peaks in excess of 3000 meters. A fantastic place, with friendly locals, good food and nature at it's best!

A Most Beautiful Place

We took a (LONG!) trip to Wastwater, in the Lakes last weekend. Despite the 200 mile round trip, this place is stunning! Not surprised it won ITV's "Britain's Favourite View"! Due to the length of the journey, we only managed an hours walk. Next time it will be a stopover somewhere on route.

We decided to take the "scenic" route on the way there, going via Windermere and the Langdales. This is an amazing route through, eventually taking us across Hardknott Pass. This isn't a journey for the faint hearted, as the road climbs a 30% gradient and switchbacks all over the place, but it is most definitely worth it. The views are stunning!