Bits and pieces from the end of 2015

Ever since I got my new camera (more than 2 years ago now I think) I have always tried to only take a photo if I think it has the potential to be a good one, not just to document where I happen to be at the time. This is no guarantee that any of the pictures I take are, or even have to be, good, but it does mean that on the odd trip or hike I end up with only a very few pictures I actually think are worth showing off. Usually these then languish on my hard drive, unblogged.

Well, no more! I have a small collection of photos from the last bit of 2015 with which to fill you in a bit on where I've been and hopefully give you a few pictures to enjoy on the way. The first three pictures in my miscellaneous album come from my trip to Krakow in November to meet up with a friend who was an invited speaker at a TV convention there. I very much enjoyed my all too brief stay in the city, and would love to go back. I have a very long list of Polish foods I didn't manage to try (though I did get me some pierogi, mmm) and we didn't make it inside the huge castle at all! Granted, the official 3 days in Krakow guide also advises you don't bother going into the castle as there is too much to see and you just don't have time. Refreshing, is how I would describe the 3 days in Krakow guide. The one weird thing about the city is its architecture, coming  across as a mixture of Vienna, Graz and Prague, and generally making me feel a bit like maybe I just made a wrong turn down a Viennese side street and ended up somewhere with a language with far too many accents on the words!

The second set of photos are from a VERY foggy late November walk in the Wienerwald. Nothing special about the route, just the classic up from Huetteldorf via the Jubilaeumswarte down to Neuwaldegg. You can see why I didn't manage a full album of photos out of this one, you could barely see more than 10m in front of yourself the whole way! But, fog has its way of making everthing wonderfully strange and unfamiliar, and I did manage to get a few shots that summed up the walk, as well as the photo of a very handsome bracket fungus I am rather proud of.

The final two images in the set come from somewhere that in some senses is much closer to home, and in other senses much further away: the Chiltern hills in Buckinghamshire. My friends and I from Bucks have long had a tradition of a walk in the days after christmas. The date has now settled on Boxing Day +1, and this year's walk was on a new route out in the countryside around Chesham. Exactly what one wants in a Boxing day +1 hike - green hills, lots of mud, a good pub at the end of it and gorgeous wether - warm and with sun breaking through the dramatic scudding clouds.

So there you have it, a few choice shots filling you in on activities of mine that would otherwise remain secret... I know some readers of this blog think I ONLY go to stunningly gorgeous places and on stunningly gorgeous walks, but that is just the editorial effect of me only wanting you to see nice photos!

So long for now and bis bald,

der Tom.

The 1st of November - the best of autumn hiking

Autumn is the best season for hiking, but I never thought I would be able to pinpoint an ideal day for hiking. As it happens, it appears there is one: the 1st of November. As you probably don't remember, on the 1st of November 2014 I enjoyed a fantastic and sunny hike up the Schneealpe. The hike in today's post took place exactly a year later, and once again we enjoyed blazing autumn sunshine, unbelievable autumn colours, and all round lovely views.

This was a long hike and encompassed a climb of 1000 vertical metres, but because those metres were spread evenly over the whole hike it really never felt that exhausting at all. We set out directly from Payerbach-Reichenau station and wound our way along the edge of the limestone cliffs overlooking the two towns. The route headed upwards along a very familiar pathway through the narrow gorge called 'Eng', which is in fact the german word for narrow... The Eng is overshadowed by steep walls of rock with precariously perched conifer trees, glowing in the sunlight at the tops of these walls but cold and in shadow at the bottom of the gorge.

We finally escaped the chilly but dramatic gorge and came out onto a wide meadow in front of a Gasthaus. We enjoyed our packed lunches sitting on the grass in the sunshine and then headed up on the steeper final leg of our outward journey to the peak of the Krummbachstein. At 1600m this is pretty high, but it suffers in popularity due to its close proximity to the Schneeberg (2000m). Nonetheless the summit of the Krummbachstein rises to a single sharp peak which is well isolated from the surrounding mountains, affording a 360 degree panoramic view.

The peak was drenched in sunshine but also exposed to a strong cold wind, requiring us to brace ourselves firmly and dress up warm while we enjoyed the exceptional panorama. There is a great view of the whole side of the Schneeberg, the flanks of the Rax plateau and the Hoellental. Spruce trees are liberally spread throughout the numerous evergreen forests covering the flanks of the mountain and many of the mountains nearby. These trees are special among pine-like (coniferous?) trees because they change colour then lose their needles in winter. Without them the alps in autumn would be much more boring at high altitudes! As it was, the bright yellows of the spruces contrasted dramatically with the deep greens of their neighbours, dusting the whole view with autumn gold.

The return walk was nicely graded and lead us into a different arm of the same gorge that eventually forms the Eng. The sun was nearing the horizon but had moved around to shine directly along the gorge, backlighting the vegetation with late afternoon sunlight and later painting the pale limestone cliffs a luminous orange. We headed back to the station before sunset, marvelling once again at the leaves of the trees in the village on the last proper autumn hike of the year!

Czech out the full gallery at the link...

Bis bald (und frohe Weihnachten!),

Der Tom

Up a mountain in Carinthia

Continuing my account of my long weekend in the vicinity of Villach...

Both my hosts and I were a little under the weather (I had simply ignored this fact the day before because: well, did you see the photos?) and while consuming large amounts of sage tea (good for the throat dontcha know) we all admitted that a full on mountain attempt was probably beyond us. But none of us wanted to give up the chance of an alpine peak, so we settled on a compromise - drive up the handy alpine road to 1400m and walk the rest!

This turned out to be a great decision, giving us a nice relaxed walk and maximum time in the autumn sunshine surrounded by amazing views. Our chosen mountain was the 'Hausberg' ('home mountain', basically the mountain climbing equivalent of 'local pub') of Villach: the big limestone chunk that is the Dobratsch. Its name is a testament to the mixed-language history of the area, something that is obvious considering the fact that modern day Slovenia is very easily visible from its peak.

We made our way up the nicely graded path, winding between steep grassy hillsides with remnant patches of early snow. The dramatic rise of the Dobratsch above its surroundings (thanks to the erosion resistance of trusty old limestone!) affords great views in most directions. On the way up, the most impressive view was to the east over the valley containing Villach and eventually Klagenfurt. As with the previous morning, a thick low blanket of fog and cloud was tenaciously hanging on, only slowly breaking up to offer glimpses of smaller hills and some of Carinthia's many lakes. A really magical view, with an added hint of schadenfreude knowing that the people who didn't get up early are stuck in the grey mist while you are enjoying the sun!

Up at the top are a very modern Gasthaus, a huge antenna tower, and two chapels, one of which is not ruined. The actual peak lies just above a steep steep drop towards the valley below. The views from this point were really fantastic (I'm saying that a lot in this entry), with the broad and steep-sided valley receding into the distance in a perfect demonstration of perspective, surronded by craggy snow capped peaks. All the more enjoyable for me of course was the way that this valley was so obviously a product of geological forces. The knife straight transition between flat valley floor and mountainous terrain on its southern edge is a textbook example of a fault, and in the valley proper you could see the knobbly deposits of earlier ice ages cut through by the modern floodplain of the river... By this time there was no mist at all and you could see all the way across to the Hohe Tauern some 80km away!

We made our way down on the other edge of the plateau, this time looking out to the south and east at the high ramparts of the Slovenian alps and the dramatic wisps of cirrus cloud above them. A short hike, but rich in amazing views and far better than hiding in the valleys!

Enjoy the photo set at the magic hyperlink!

Bis bald,

Der Tom

Autumn colours in Carinthia

We're still way back in the past here! But it never hurts to remember how fantastic autumn is, even if we may feel a little sad right now that it has slipped away and turned to winter behind our backs! This is post one of two detailing a brief expedition I made to Carinthia (Kaernten) at the end of October. I visited friends who I have hosted repeatedly for many years in Vienna, but like a typical Viennese person, I had never managed to leave the bright lights of the city to return the favour until now...

I stayed in my friends' flat in a big house on the outskirts of Villach, a town of about 60,000 people close to Austria's mountainous border with Slovenia, and firmly among the Alps. However, I did not see anything of the town other than the train station, because there were much more important things around, namely woods and mountains!

It was another one of those warm, sunny autumn weekends that Austria is blessed with. As is common here in that most magical season, the valleys were covered in thick but extremely low hanging clouds/ fog at daybreak, which slowly broke up throughout the day. Waking early on my first morning I was encouraged out into the chilly mist to observe the view from the back terrace and discovered a direct view over fields and houses to a picturesquely perched castle on a nearby hilltop, wreathed in mist. A few hours later and the sun had burned the mist away, leaving the same castle surrounded by bright splashes of colour from the many trees.

After lunch it was time to head towards the castle. Not to go in, but instead to visit the japanese macaques living next door. Over 100 macaques live at the Affenberg (monkey mountain) attraction, chosen because they can deal handily with the alpine winters without having to be brought indoors. The monkeys were brilliant to see, and the whole experience was improved by the wise words of our guide through the enclosure (where the macaques run free and you have to watch out they don't steal your stuff!). My favourite fact was that social skills count for much more than brute strength if you want to push your way up the ladder in macaque society. A heartening thought!

After the monkey mountain we set out further into the woods, following a ridge with occasional views to a large lake to the north and a stunning alpine panorama to the south. The woods were perfect, huge splashes of intense colours making bold contrasts with stands of dark green conifers or moss-covered outcrops of metamorphic rock. In shaded areas the moss, swamp, standing water and bracket fungi provided a silvery blue-green palette in stark contrast to the blazing intensity of the stands of deciduous trees lit by the slowly sinking autumn sun. We wound up and down on top of the ridge for several happy hours, before descending to the shore of the lake (Ossiacher See) just as the sun was setting.

Pictures are as always at the link, and sometime soonish you will get another post about our adventures on days 2 and 3 of my stay!

Bis bald,

Der Tom

Sturm in Gumpoldskirchen

On the one hand its ridiculous I'm still posting photos I took in September, but on the other hand it is pleasing, because it makes me feel as if I delivered on my resolution (renewed yearly) to make the most out of the wonderful month that is September in Vienna & surroundings. Today's brief account is the product of what is also a yearly excursion of mine, to the vineyard covered slopes above Gumpoldskirchen, in search of Sturm and various (mostly fatty) things spread on bread.

 

This year was particularly successful as I and my companions managed to hit on a really incredibly sunny day for our expedition. This greatly helped our enthusiasm for Sturm (that's the still fermenting grape juice full of yeast, if you weren't paying attention the last few years) and also for 'proper' wines, and we managed to visit a fair few of the numerous stands crowding the Wasserleitungsweg in the direction of Baden.

This was certainly no hiking trip, and as dusk slowly approached we made the decision to turn round and head back to Gumpoldskirchen rather than carry on the much longer walk to Baden. Right as the sun began to set behind the Wienerwald a magnificent wall of cloud began moving in from the West. Blocking out the twilight sky, the clouds took on an incredible dark blue, inky colour. The normal strong brightness contrast between clouds and ground was completely removed, and photos capturing the whole scene in one exposure became possible.

We made our way under the rapidly darkening ink-sky, gazing eastwards out from under the shelf of the clouds to see the last of the sunset far away across the Vienna basin. Sporadic rain began to fall, visible against the bright backdrop until darkness really set in just as we got back to the town.

Hope you enjoy this small set of photos taken entirely during the dramatic half an hour or so right at the end of our walk! Click ze leenk for the full set.

Bis bald!

Der Tom

Schneeberg from Weichtalhaus, with goats

Autumn is my favourite time of year in Austria, and one of the biggest reasons is that it is the perfect season for hiking. Although you can't predict the best days, Autumn always delivers some perfect hiking weather: not too hot, not too cold, with the added magic of low lying mists, mellow afternoon light, and the icing on the cake: the turning leaves. I knew I wanted to the make the most of the best hiking season, and so planned this demanding hike, 1500 metres of climb up the steep south side of the Schneeberg (never before climbed by me!), and then down the rocky Fadensteig. Luckily I found two companions willing to take on the challenge, and (far too) bright and early we got off the bus at Weichtalhaus to begin the ascent.

The first part of the climb was winding switchbacks through leafy forest. Sticking to a slow and steady pace that would pay dividends throughout the hike, we made it up half the total ascent exactly on time, emerging into the bright morning sunshine for a brief rest stop at a hut. The views got better and better as we climbed higher, giving us a hazy panorama over the looming Rax plateau, including my first ever look into the dramatically steep-walled 'grosse' Hoellental from a cross-valley vantage point. The trees gave way to bushes and long grass as we took lunch with the already impressive view in front of us and the final ascent at our backs.

The wind atop the Schneeberg was much fiercer than lower down, howling around us as we zigged, zagged and zigged again up the steep grass and rock slope. We arrived at the summit at just the right time (the 'true', 2076m summit of the Schneeberg, another first for me!). The peak was at that moment situated in a large gap in the cloud cover, the ceiling of which was just slightly below the height of the peak. The tops of the far off cloud banks were just visible, even while the receding ranks of hills remained visible below the cloud layer. The most exciting moment was when, turning southwards into the full force of the wind, I spotted a cloud that was getting ready to engulf the summit. Standing there at exactly the same level as the advancing cloud glowing backlit from the sun was an amazing feeling, as if this huge but delicately patterned wall was bearing down on us and all we had to do was to reach out...

Distracted by the beauty of nature, I almost missed the two hiking goats that appeared on the summit moments after us! While their humans took summit photos, the two goats stood unconcerned on the broad path, kitted out with balanced matching saddle bags and handsome bells. The hiking pack-goats and their human companions followed us on our descent, accompanying us with their musical tinkling. After they overtook us and left the path, we threaded our way down the Fadensteig, the yellowing afternoon light lending the flanks of the Schneeberg extra texture and colour. After the Steig we were weary, and took full advantage of the existence of a precarious-looking but functional chairlift to shave the final 300m descent off our journey, thus making it to the bus stop just in time for our ride home.

One of the hikes of the year, no doubt! If you want to experience glowing cloud walls and hiking goats at larger size, don't hesitate to click onwards to the full gallery!

Bis bald,

der Tom.

Glasgow trip part 2: the isle of Arran!

As I mentioned in my last post, the weather on my recent trip to Scotland was fantastic. My hosts, well versed in the art of caring and feeding for a geologist (and themselves not averse to a bit of fresh air of course!) kindly organised a trip to the island of Arran for me. I was very excited at the prospect for many reasons. Firstly, islands just have an intrinsic coolness factor because they are islands. Secondly, I honestly am not sure when the last time was before this recent trip that I actually saw the sea from ground level. Thirdly, Arran is famous as somewhat of a mecca for British geology students and I had always considered it a mark of slight shame that I had never even touched its shores.

Part of the coolness of islands is that you can use boats to get to them! I have always lived far enough from the sea or other big stretches of water that ferries hold a definite excitement. They combine being big cool machines with the prospect of a journey across the waves AND there's usually a cool view to boot! True to form I thoroughly enjoyed the ferry trip over to Arran, staying out for the whole trip despite the rather strong winds and gazing at the approaching island. You can get a pretty good idea of the geology of the whole place from that distance too, would be a good point to have the first stop of a field trip.

Arran is so famous because it contains in its 30km length a swathe of geology reaching from 500 million years ago to the recent past, encompassing sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic geology of great variety in one easily accessible area. Of course, we only had time to wander over a tiny bit of it, and in any case some of the other people didn't seem to think that we were ONLY there to look at the rocks. Weirdos. In any case, we settled on walking round the shore from our landing point of Brodick, making our goal a prominent castle (of the more stately-home kind) around the bay.

It was absolutely gorgeous sunny weather, and my main impression was of all the different colours on display. The rocks (Permian New Red sandstones) were wonderfully varying hues of red, weathering to a red-tinged sandy beach next to Brodick itself. Seen across the deep blue-green of the sea in sunlight were the much whiter sands more typical of the west coast of Scotland, studded with bright greens from the seaweed and grasses in the sand dunes, and loomed over by the dark greens, purples, browns and greys of the mountains (well in the UK we would say mountains) above.

We walked all the way round the bay, reached the castle and then headed back, stopping to a local bakery to eat a delicious macaroni and cheese pie(!!!). This tasty tasty food nearly scuppered my plan to be awake for the trip home, but I overcame the sleepiness and was able to once again admire the incredible panorama on our trip back to the mainland. Enjoy the bumper pack of photos available at this magic link!

Bis bald,

der Tom.