Chasing a waterfall in Mittenwald, gazing at the Eibsee, and views from Germany’s highest mountain!
Saturday was a full day for us. It was definitely fuller than what I’ve been used to lately. We walked several miles in warm weather and the pedometer on my iPhone was giving me bursts of celebratory praise in the form of virtual fireworks. Still, even with all of the walking we did on Saturday, we missed the majestic waterfall at Leutaschklamm, which is most easily accessed from Mittenwald, Germany. So, on Sunday morning, we decided to visit the German side of the gorge.
We were a little bit confused about this part of the walk. When we read up on visiting the gorge, people mentioned a three euro fee to “see the waterfall”. I was under the impression that it was on the gorge trail itself. It’s not. If you go to the German side of the gorge with your car, you have to park at a lot in the town, walk down a pleasant country road alongside the rushing brook, and then you will encounter the German entrance to the gorge trail. However, you won’t find the waterfall on that trail, which looked pretty steep and obviously leads to the panorama bridge. I shared pictures of the bridge in part three of this series– one post previously.
Instead, you have to go to the nearby snack bar– which you can’t miss– pay three euros, go through a turnstile, don a mask, and then walk through a misty crevice on a wooden planked trail. Your three euros also gets you access to the toilet, which is pretty handy. I didn’t take a picture of it, but the sign on the men’s room reads that that toilet is for men only. The ladies room is for both men and women. I guess the men’s room only has a urinal. Unlike the gorge trail, the waterfall path is narrow and it’s impossible to “socially distance”, hence the mask requirement. If you don’t have one, you can buy one at the snack bar.
I took video of our walk to the waterfall. At the end of the video, there are a few clips from Saturday’s walk on the Austrian side. Here it is!
I also got a lot of nice pictures of this excursion. The walk took about twenty minutes or so, and only because we stopped to enjoy the waterfall and the cool mist it created. I would say this experience was easily one of the highlights of our trip! I’m so glad we didn’t miss it.
On the way to the waterfall, you cross a bridge that begs you to stop and take a photo. 
One of many shrines… 
Lovely meadow view along the country road. 
Sigh… future Facebook cover photo. 
At this point, you can stand and feel the cool mist from the waterfall, but to actually see the waterfall itself, you have to pay admission. 
Wear a mask… You can even buy one at the snack bar. 
It’s a narrow path that can get slippery due to the water. Hold hands with your children. We saw a few who looked scared! 
Another shrine. 
If you look carefully, you can see the panorama bridge above the crevice of the waterfall. 
Not the best photo. I was rushed… but this is the story of how the waterfall was found. 
I think the waterfall itself is in Austria. 
It was late morning by the time we were finished seeing the waterfall. Once again, I was glad we arrived early. Parking spots were filling up fast, and just as they were on Saturday, people were lurking for a place to park. We noticed that the lot on the Austrian side was completely full when we passed it on the way to Mittenwald. And as Bill was trying to vacate our spot, two dumbass guys parked their car directly behind us temporarily so they could get a Parkschein (parking ticket). They were completely oblivious to the fact that they were blocking us, too. But even once they noticed Bill’s annoyed face, they still didn’t move, and they almost caused an accident. Unfortunately, they weren’t the only dumbasses we ran into on this trip. But, in fairness, I’m sure some drivers thought Bill was a dumbass, too.
After the thrill of the waterfall, we decided to visit Eibsee, which is a huge, beautiful lake at the base of the Zugspitze. First, we’d have lunch in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, which we hadn’t visited since 2009. It was a bit of a ghost town, probably due to COVID-19. I noticed a favorite Konditorei that we visited a few times back in the day was closed. I was sad to see it. Last time we were there, we parked next to a car that had been keyed… looked like maybe the owner’s ex girlfriend was a bit of a psycho. S/he had scrawled “Fucking bastard” on the side of the car, or something like that. I remember feeling sorry for the guy, having to drive around with that on his car. He might have been a bastard, but it was still not a great look. Plus, the thought of the sound the key must have made on the metal set my teeth on edge. That was at least twelve years ago and I could see that the Konditorei, which had served such delightful pastries, coffee drinks, and beer was closed up tightly. What a pity. Edited to add: my German friend says the person who ran the Konditorei when we visited had a bad reputation. Maybe he was the owner of the “Fucking bastard” car. He disappeared sometime in 2009 (same year we left) and a much better tenant took over. She closed the business last fall.
We had lunch at an Italian restaurant called Pizzeria Renzo, although I would have loved to have stopped in at El Greco, which was a favorite Greek spot we used to visit back in the day. We thought El Greco had closed, but as we passed it on the way back to the car, it was obviously open. I guess they took down their outside menu because of COVID-19. A lot of restaurants are offering abbreviated menus right now, since a lot of them are printing them on single sheets of disposable paper instead of handing out thick books of pre-COVID days.
Mittenwald is a cute town! 
The mountains on the way to Garmisch… 
I remember being thrilled by this when Garmisch was the only place I’d ever seen in this area. There’s so much more to it. 
Studying the menu at Pizzeria Renzo. We wore masks into the restaurant and to use the restroom. Otherwise, business as usual. 
I had cannelloni, which was stuffed with ham and cheese and came with a side of tomato sauce. Bill had basil pesto spaghetti. 
This was surprisingly good! Bill said he’d get the cannelloni if we ever come back to this restaurant. 
Vending machines in the restroom… classy place. 😉 
A shot of the outside of the restaurant as we crossed the street. 
The Rathaus. 
Sad that this Konditorei closed. It was a good place with dirndl clad ladies and beautiful pastries… and guys with angry exes who like to vandalize cars. 
Bill’s big dreams… Property in Garmisch-Partenkirchen doesn’t come cheaply. 
El Greco! 
After lunch, we made our way to the Eibsee in Grainau. We knew it would be crowded. I wasn’t expecting it to be the way it was. I thought the lake would be like a lot of the other lakes I’ve seen in Germany… kind of low key. Well– the Eibsee, which is right next to the huge tourist attraction of the Zugspitze and either the Seilbahn (cable car) or cog wheel train to the summit– is not an easygoing place. Lots of people were taking advantage of the lake– swimming, sailing, paddle boating, hiking, and picnicking. I had really just wanted to get a few photos, so that’s what we focused on… then, kind of on the fly, we decided to take the cable car to the top of the Zugspitze, where we enjoyed a beer and got even more photos.
On the way down the road to the Eibsee/Zugspitze complex. It’s a much bigger deal than I realized. 
Everybody welcome! And it seemed like everybody was there! 
The parking lot… but it wasn’t totally full. 
Boating… 
Gazing at the lake’s beauty… 
Sailing… 
Swimming… 
Hiking… 
These pictures of the Eibsee are kind of misleading. I managed to get some that don’t show a lot of people. The place was very crowded, and we would have been hard pressed to find a spot if we’d wanted to go swimming or boating. I didn’t have a bathing suit with me, anyway. I was glad to get the pictures, though, and now that I’ve seen the Eibsee, I don’t have to visit again. Since we were already there, we decided to see the Zugspitze, too. Bill was last up there in the 1980s, when there was no Seilbahn. The cog wheel train still runs and you have a choice as to which method you want to use to get to the top of the mountain. Since face masks were required for either method, we chose the Seilbahn, which is super efficient and only takes ten minutes. The basic cost for either method of getting to the top of the Zugspitze was 59 euros per person, although they had other tickets for families or those who wanted to visit other attractions.
Masked up and ready to go… 
The inside of the Seilbahn. It’s very fast, clean, and safe! 
Up we go! 
It felt like we were in outer space… 
The lake seems so much smaller from up here… 
Yes, that’s snow. 
The summit. We didn’t bother going up there. There was a line like at Mount Everest… 
A few clouds. 
With my luck, I’d fall and bust my ass or something. 
I scored us a seat at a table. It was about thirty degrees cooler on top of the mountain. 
Prost! 
Going down… 
I’m glad we visited! 
We could have spent a lot more time exploring here if we’d wanted to… They have lots of exhibits as well as other activities that we didn’t try. It’s obviously a popular attraction for children, too. But it was a very full day for us, so we were ready to go back to the hotel. Getting out of the parking lot was obnoxious– we encountered a trifecta of dumbasses. As Bill was backing out of his space, an oblivious young fellow with water toys almost collided with the hood. Then, another dumbass with his buddies and perhaps a girlfriend, decided to aggressively angle for Bill’s spot. He came very close to hitting our 2020 Volvo. I sure as hell am not looking for another legal issue this year, although it would not have been our fault if he’d hit us. Bill just sat there and stared the kid down until he let us leave.
Finally, the last dumbass of the day was an old guy on a moped. He suddenly got a wild hair up his ass and cut Bill off as he carelessly pulled into traffic without even looking for oncoming cars. It was a very near miss. The guy could have met his maker if Bill weren’t such a good driver.
On the way back into Leutasch, I spotted a little fest going on. We stopped and listened to some Austrian folk music, bought a small piece of art and some locally produced gin, and checked out a camel who was brought in for camel rides. They also had pony rides.
Back in Austria! 
Such a beautiful place! 
I could never get tired of this scenery… 
Some folks and their dog were enjoying the cool creek. 
Vending machines in Europe aren’t just for refreshments! 
A market. I bought a little piece of folk art here. 
The lady who sold us the art wondered if we were Dutch. She turned out to be a retired tour guide. 
I was delighted by the Austrian band playing folk music. 
And the cute pony! 
As well as the camel… 
A little gin tasting. We bought a bottle. 
This was a delight!
And finally, our last dinner at the fabulous Hotel Kristall to cap off this gargantuan post about our Sunday. I really enjoyed Austria and it was far too long since our last visit. We need to come back again and explore more of this underrated country with its warm hospitality and breathtaking views!
A lovely Italian red… 
Housemade ravioli with mountain cheese that was mild enough for me to enjoy. 
Consumme with a Leberknodel. I let Bill enjoy that alone. 
I had fish with lentils and potato pancakes. 
Bill had goulash with spatzle and vegetables– Brussels sprouts and carrots! 
And warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream for dessert. I was delighted that this wasn’t a lava cake!
I would say that Sunday, August 9th, was the best day I’d had in a long time. It was worth the cost of the entire trip. But there were more thrills to come in Italy. More on that in the next post!