E5 Stage 8: Climbing Passes, Building Bridges

Memminger Hutte to Zams, Austria

Thursday, July 25

After another sardine-style sleeping arrangement, we ate a meager breakfast and hit the trail. Because of yesterday's rain, the drying room had not effectively dried our clothes, so some of us were hiking in still wet boots and socks. We climbed from the Hutte around the bowl, which had a tarn, a glacial fed pond, and I took some great photos-- the setting was great, not the photographer ;)

The pass is not too far away and the climb would take us along rocky terrain and sometimes slippery slopes, including a snowbank crossing.  

The false col opened up into another very large bowl, surrounded by mountains, in which another tarn and lots of snow were resting. The increasing inclined climb to the pass had tiny rocks that would slip under your feet, so footing at those angles was very delicate. However, after steep slippery climbs and steel ropes to guide us, we finally made it over the top. We also invited some other climbers to take a group photo, even though we didn't know any of them. However, nothing brings people together like a tough climb and a group photo with strangers :-)

The steady climb down would take us also down very steep terrain, unstable gravel, and into the valley, which would follow a river.  The winding river trail would promise us the city of Zams, yet, it was still long way down.  I also noticed I had built a bridge here a long while ago... 

The rocky trail gave way to forested paths, pastures, which included cows along the way, and finally, a route that was so treacherous, people had to carve the trail into the side of limestone rock. And In this deep gorge below, we found dizzying views many a time.

The trail was always downhill, leading us finally into the view Zams far below. The trail began to get steeper and working back-and-forth switchbacks. I moved ahead at an accelerated rate, wanting to end the pain that my knees and feet were experiencing.  I found the end of the trail, where I joined a young Austrian man on a bench and talked about family travels.  My dad was only 12 minutes behind, which shows that he was getting faster on the trail, and we met at a sound down the road, where we would drink and eat and be refreshed.  

We wandered into the downtown area at Zams, a small town in Austria, home to many restaurants, hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, and also, a cable car that would take us up to the next summit. 

We found the tourism office, which recommended room and board to us, and we found it at a hotel.   It included our own room and shower, which was like heaven after two hutte experiences. After showering and doing laundry, we went into town in search of supplies. My dad went to the store for food and I went to the tourist office for free Wi-Fi, so that I could face time with Alina and catch up on blogging.

After catching up on rest, we went to a restaurant that serves traditional Austrian food. We were not disappointed. I had a crusted pork schnitzel, which included french fries, and delicious sauces and bacon on top, which can only be described as AMAZING! This was the best dish I ever had in this experience in Europe.  To ensure it was the best experience of the Austrian cuisine, I finished up with their version of apple strudel with whip cream, and it was not disappointing.

Afterwords we went back to the hotel, and slept well.