We started the day off slowly, since Russ and I needed to go into Fuessen to see if we could find someone who could reinforce the wristbands of our hiking poles (something about the two of us -- weight, maybe? -- was causing them to break with depressing regularity (i.e., every 3 days or so)).
We found someone who could fix them, but only by the end of the day, so we had to plan to get to Falkenstein by 5:30 so I could take a taxi back to Fuessen to pick them up (such are the absurdities of the H2H).
We set off at 11AM, had an uninspiring lunch at the Hotel Alatsee, and finally arrived at our hotel at around 5:30PM for a hiking time of 5.5 hours. The day was supposed to take only 4.5 hours, but the rain made descents slippery and sapped our wills on the uphills. On the plus side, we saw lots of salamanders (Molche).
The ponchos worked well for Lidia and me, although my propensity to sweat overwhelmed somewhat the natural ventilation. The pack stayed dry, however, and I only got cold when I went bareheaded (oddly enough in order to cool off :-).
The hotel, Schlossanger Alp, seems very nice, and the rooms are large, comfortable, and heated (which will help us dry our boots and clothes tonight).
Russell was a hero today: he offered to come with me to Fuessen to pick up the reinforced and repaired wristbands. When I said that it wasn't necessary for both of us to go, he said that we should play rock/scissors/paper for the privilege. And then he purposefully lost (it is possible :-). He said after that he didn't feel as if I should always be the one who had to take care of everything. Is that a nice brother or what? And then Sally said she would go with him (same comment about girlfriend).
The weather report this morning said the next couple of days are supposed to be rainy too, but I'm holding out hope that they will have changed their minds by tomorrow.
Carcassonne and dinner call....
