Monday, 2 July 2012

Finkenberg

Pfitscherjoch Haus

28.8

1219.5

Mostly cloudy and warm

Pfitscherjoch Haus

Fruit and yoghurt and rolls and jam for breakfast; muesli bars and chocolate for lunch; schnitzel, chips and salad, and apple strudel for dinner.

None

I left the Pension after saying my goodbyes at 8:30am with rain threatening.  Sure enough I had only gone about 100m and some big drops began to fall, but it never developed into anything and the same thing happened throughout the day.  I gather there is a big weather system dumping a lot of rain on Switzerland and I must be just on the edge of it, because the day was characterised by fast-moving clouds overhead, some looking ominous.

For the whole day I was going to be climbing gradually from Finkenberg (859m) to Pfitscherjoch Haus (2277m), which didn't look to be too tough and that's the way it turned out.  Early on as I walked to Ginzling, the trail-marking was again confusing and then some had been closed because of landslides.  There was a road paralleling my route up the valley and I ended up walking alongside that for a few kilometres, including through some long tunnels.  Although there was a footpath, it was an eerie experience, with the sounds of the traffic (there wasn't a lot) magnified inside the tunnel.  I think there was some kind of mountain-bike tour following the same route as me, because I was passed by many during the first three hours walking.

I stopped for a break at Ginzling, which wasn't much more than a hamlet and then followed a picturesque country lane for a while alongside a stream with pine forests higher up covering the lower slopes of the towering mountains.  The grade was easy and the walking pleasant.  The cooler temperatures seemed to have reduced the fly population.  At the end of the country lane the Via Alpina climbed up to a higher forested valley which later became rural again with a huge dam wall looming upstream.  I found a nice spot for lunch by a rushing stream and examined the mountains while I ate my muesli bars.

After lunch the trail went up to the base of the dam wall, which was mighty impressive up close, and then climbed up the side of the valley to the top.  The dam was a bit of a tourist attraction, with a few restaurants and quite a few sightseers, walkers and mountain-bikers having a look around.  The scale of the dam and the streams and waterfalls filing it was impressive from the top as well with a vast bowl of a valley at the far end still covered in snow on its higher slopes.  There was a kiosk where the Via Alpina left the dam and I treated myself to an ice-cream and Coke since I was making good time.

From there it was a steady walk up a bare rocky valley, with some spectacular waterfalls coming in from one side, to a ridge which marked the Austrian/Italian border.  I crossed into Italy with no ceremony (there was nobody there) and immediately noticed the trail signs were much better (hope it keeps up).  I then walked about 500m to Pfitscherjoch Haus which was obviously being extended, arriving about 4:30pm.  Fortunately, it was still open despite being an absolute  building site with tradesman everywhere (concreting the steps as I walk up and down!) and a crane and bulldozer operating outside.  Sadly I don't speak any Italian, but with my limited German and their limited English I managed to get a bed in a room I'm sharing with a mountain-climbing couple from Austria.  A warm shower was included in the price and the dining room is fine, so it's not too bad.