Also known as the slightly more formidable Eagle’s Nest. I will give you no prizes for guessing who this was built for on the occasion of his 50th birthday – but don’t let that dissuade you from visiting, you should come here for the views alone.
Nowadays, apart from pictures in the odd guide book, you will struggle to find any evidence of past tenants here (do note the red marble fire place in the dining room however, made all the more noteworthy thanks to the huge chunks hacked off as souvenirs by liberators all those years ago).
Anyway, whoever decided upon this building’s position obviously knew their mountain vistas. The view from the top is quite incredible surrounded as it is by the most magnificent peaks, and the emerald Konigsee glinting in the sunlight below (on the day we visited anyway!).
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Beautiful hike up to the Eagles Nest. I might feel half dead now but the view was worth it!
You can of course get there by bus should the mood take you – they arrive constantly throughout the day, and on paying your entrance fee you also choose your departure time for the journey back down. But, as we happened to be on a bit of a mission (Did I mention those super fit hiking friends we went away with I?) we decided to hike up.
The tiny speck you can see on the top right was our destination for the day…
I say “we”, but actually I don’t remember being consulted about it – it’s a very long way up. There are no plateaus here or nice flat walking terrain, it’s all blinking well up-hill (obviously). I will admit to having a slight sense of humour failure in the last 45 minutes of walking (up!!), and Mr R might have borne the brunt of my uphill grumpiness particular because he had forgotten my walking shoes so I had to do the entire walk in not particularly grip worthy boots. I hasten to add that I am not some kind of princess – whilst I was busy packing the rest of the stuff, he had actually told me that he had put all the shoes and coats in the car. My fault for believing him after his track record!
But, put to shame by our mountain goat-esque children who had no problem clambering upwards, and rewarded by the stunning mountain scenery with the added bonus of trees putting on a brilliant autumn display, I finally made it to the top (as did the others obviously, but they didn’t experience the same sense of achievement that I did undoubtedly!)…
Once at our destination – it’s now a bier garten and restaurant – we bathed in glorious sunshine over an extended and very well earned lunch, admiring the para-gliders competing with the alpine birds above, whilst the children happily entertained themselves playing “rock-shops”. I am not sure anyone bought any!
Not my lunch – presentation made me laugh though…
And after a while, with energy levels replenished, we walked all the way back down again. That in theory might sound easier than the upwards journey, but, whilst my legs didn’t actually agree (it’s harder than you think walking down hill for that length of time!), my head totally did.
The views from up there are truly spectacular, and congrats to you on the hike up! I must admit that I’ve only been up there by the bus, but I’m sure we’ll get around to hiking it one of these days. The whole Austrian holiday sounds like it was perfect, and love the photos!
Don’t let me put you off, it really is worth the walk up! :D Thank you. Yes, we are so lucky to live so close, we had two weekends there one after the other! :)
Your photos are stunning and you have made me want to take off with the family on adventures again. Must get that pasport renewed…
Thank you! Austria is great in that it’s not too far, the scenery is stunning, the people are generally lovely, the cake is good (most important) and there is so much stuff for kids to do! :)
These pictures are amazing – love the one of the tree trunk (fab colours) and the mountains. I would have felt very grumpy too if my husband had forgotten my walking boots for an up hill climb! X
Thanks S! I think nature was trying to placate me! :D xx
wow the views are wonderful you must have thighs of steal climbing up there, your picture of the sausage soup cracks me up :)
If only! :D The sausage soup cracked me up too! :D Hope you are well xx
It looks stunning – and kudos to you for the trek!
Thank you Annie. Have just about recovered! :D x
As always, your photos are stunning – not sure how I feel about the sausage in the soup though ;-)
Thank you so much Cass! Yes, I am glad it wasn’t my lunch! :D
Oh Emma! What glorious, glorious photos! Bop Mr.R on the head for forgetting your decent shoes.But it looks totally worth it and thanks always for sharing.
Thank you so much Aly. Yes, he wasn’t very popular for a little while! :D xx
Goodness AMAZING photos. Just beautiful. You must have been exhausted.
We definitely felt like we deserved our dinner that night! :D Thanks Jenny! :)
Know what you mean about going back down – tough on the suspension! Sounds like an impressive hike and such spectacular views! Love the sun through the trees shot too x
Thanks so much T. It was lovely – legs have just about recovered!! :D
What a glorious day – I loved your photographs, although they made me long for the mountains :-)
Ginger
Thanks so much Ginger! We are lucky to have them on our doorstep, albeit temporarily! :)
Oh wow, hiking surely had to be the best way to go up, you could stop and enjoy it as you pleased. Really stunning and that sausage in soup made me laugh! Mich x
Thanks Mich x
Congratulations on making it to the top, despite the boots, My husband is an expert packer but forgot all my underwear once, removing it from the case so he could re-pack then forgetting to put them back in. Imagine climbing a mountain with no knickers on!
Fab photos including the rude soup…
Oh dear, that doesn’t sound good! And yes, I reckon someone was enjoying themselves in the kitchen! :D