I like it when I can sleep in a bedroom in the mountains, as opposed to a bunk-room: no snorers and plenty of space. However, given Gabi's experience last night, I started to reconsider: she had an 18 mattress bunkroom all to herself... way more room than I had, and, one assumes, nobody snoring either. At least, I was starting to reconsider, but then we arrived at the Rotsteinpasshütte, and saw how we were going to "sleep" tonight. For those who were there and remember, think Refuge de Balme the night before we went down to Samoëns. And just as it was then, the place here is full tonight. With lots of familes... with lots of kids. Sigh. It's going to be a tough one.
But I'm ahead of myself: back to this morning. After a leisurely breakfast in Hotel Forelle, during which I was able to check the news and a couple of blogs via the house WiFi, we set off under blue skies and sun (but, how else?). We had about 1000m to do with full packs up to the Rotsteinpass, and then after we would climb to the 2500m Säntis peak and back with a lighter load. We were in no particular hurry because I'd already decided to scale the hike back given the amount of snow there was around Säntis... we'd do about 6 hours total, instead of the 8.5 that was planned.
First stop was Meglisalp, where we had something to drink and Gabi applied plasters to an incipient blister on her heel. Second stop was Rotsteinpass, where we had lunch and got the bad news about tonight's accommodations. Third stop, after an impressive (lots of vertical cliffs on either side) and impressively secured (cables and steps galore) hike up the Lieslgrat was the Säntis peak, where Gabi applied a second plaster (the first had slipped off) to an in the meantime full-fledged blister. Then back to the Rosteinpasshütte, an unexpected (and very welcome, but expensive... 5CHF for 3 minutes) shower, and now writing this.
Views weren't superb today... it was pretty hazy when it wasn't cloudy, and it was cloudy a lot of the time. That was OK as long as we were hiking (because I was hot enough anyway), but it was chilly at lunch and there were only intermittent views from the peak. Don't remember if I've mentioned this before, but the construction on top of Säntis is one of two blots on what is otherwise a spectacularly beautiful area (the other being a vast car park in the valley at Wasserauen). It looks like a 1950's conception of 22nd century architecture (although it was only built in the 1990's), and is "crowned" with a massive (123m high) spire. I'm not sure what its function is, but as for its motivation, I'm inclined to believe that it was built as a compensation for the Appenzeller males' ego after they were forced to give the Appenzeller women the right to vote... in 1992.
We are up fairly high here... about 2120m... and tomorrow will go up almost to the top of the second highest peak in the area, the Altman, at around 2400m, before dropping back down to Hotel Bollenwees (1450m)... where I have reserved a room :-). Gabi, poor soul, only requested a bunk... but who knows, maybe she'll get lucky again like in the Hotel Forelle!
I wonder if I'll sleep at all tonight. I wonder how many snorers there will be in the upstairs bunkroom complex. Sigh.
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