Sankt Gilgen

A very good day. Wonderful weather - high of 72 and sunny- perfect for me. Came to this area to hike so off this AM for one of the hikes on the tourist information brochure. Drove to a mountain lake up in these “little” Alps and planned to walk around the lake - Schwarzensee - a bit less than 3 miles. A beautiful spot, not many people; peaceful and serene. Only walked about 30 minutes and there is a cafe! Just there for the hikers and bikers. Lots of people on bikes- the trails go everywhere- from very easy to very hard. The pics today are mostly of the scenery on the hike. About 2 miles around the was a path going the opposite direction and the sign said Moosalm - 20 minutes. Hiking signs here are in time not mileage. What a great detour. Meadows filled with wildflowers of every color. The Alpine wildflowers are small so they do not show up well on a picture as there is so much green around them. Then a bit through the woods and soon arrived at Moosalm - and another cafe. No road anywhere in site.

Back to the car with a plan to drive around the lake. Stopped for lunch at one of the other small towns on the lake. A couple with their dog joined me and they spoke some English - a lot more than my German. So I had lunch companions. He was an MD in Germany and she worked for BBC. Then found out on my “drive around the lake” - the road goes not go around the lake. 😂. There is this giant sheer-face rock/mountain coming out of the lake that gets in the way. Retraced my route and back home for some planning time. Still need a couple places to stay after I leave here Friday.

Out for dinner in the main plaza in town - had great fish tacos! The fish come out of the lake, the menu calls it salmon trout, assuming like our steelhead. A light chili dance and guacamole. Really good. After dinner frozen yogurt, of course. (My 2nd of the day). 😩. There is going to be a rude awakening when I hit the scales at home. 🥹

And the mail event for the day; local band concert at 8:30P. Sat on a bench with a couple who turned out to be from England. Had a great conversation with them before, during and after the concert. The band was fun, they marched down the Main Street in town - lots of brass and percussion- some flutes, clarinets, and French horns thrown in for balance. The music was traditional, lots of marches, some modern and all in the Austrian. A very fun evening. Walk the mile home with my new best friends from England as they were staying at the hotel next to mine.Read more