Day 5 (October 5, 2008)

We checked out of our hotel in Bern and took the long journey by train to Schynige Platte. In our planning we thought that the mountain hotel at Schynige Platte would be the perfect base camp for 2 days of hiking, but it was very late in the season and the hotel was preparing to close for the season. Unfortunately, an early snow had fallen in the area we were planning to hike and many people advised us not to go. Needless to say we were nervous about the conditions we might encounter.

Other than by hiking, access to the hotel is via a special rack railway that goes up the mountain. When we finally got to Schynige Platte the weather was perfect. There were near perfect views of all the surrounding mountains. We checked in, and did our first hike. The trails were snow covered and very muddy. However, the scenic vistas more than made up for it. We got back to the Hotel to find there were only 8 guests (including us), and there was an incredible 5-course meal. At dinnertime we had a full panoramic view of the sun setting on the Swiss Alp's tallest icy giants. We were definitely glad we did not cancel because of the snow.