Teddy Edward: July 2016

Last month we took a trip to the Tegernsee area in South Bavaria; Moira and I had been there a couple of years back and really enjoyed it. This time we went with some family members, namely my sister Florence with her husband Danny and my brother George with his wife Linda. So here are some words and pictures to tell the story of our holiday.
We were staying in the little town of Rottach-Egern on the shore of Lake Tegernsee. The guesthouse we were in was lovely and we each had a balcony which gave us views of the foothills of the Alps. The guesthouse was just a five minute walk from the waterfront where the views were pretty good as well:

View from our balcony

Rottach Waterfront

Swans in Rottach Harbour

Boats for hire

George & Linda at Rottach Waterfront

Looking towards Rottach Church

The day after we arrived we took a trip on one of the boats that sail between the towns sitting on the lake. We paid for a round trip which allowed us to sail round all the towns and get off where we wanted. We stayed on the boat as it stopped in the towns of Tegernsee and Gmund and we got off when it reached Bad Weissee, which took about an hour.
Here are some views from the boat trip including a little video clip:

Boat approaching Rottach

Leaving Rottach on the boat

Sailing on Lake Tegernsee

Florence & Danny on the boat

Enjoying the boat trip

Boat leaving Bad Weissee

Bad Weissee Waterfront

We had lunch at Bad Weissee, which included a couple of the local beers of course, had a wander round the waterfront pathways (which go on for miles) before getting the bus back to Rottach; the guesthouse had given us all free bus passes and as true Scots it seemed impolite not to use them.
The following day we decided to go a bit further afield and drove to the town of Schliersee on the shore of Lake Schliersee (the free bus passes didn't go this far!!). This is the town where my grandfather was born; he emigrated to Scotland as a young man way back around 1900 where he met my grandmother...............the rest as they say is history.
Here is a view from the shore of Lake Schliersee:

Shoreline of Lake Schliersee

A short walk uphill from the centre of Schliersee there is a ski-lift which takes you to one of the hills above the lake and as the weather was nice we took a trip up there:

On the Schliersee Ski-lift

The Town of Schliersee

Lake Schliersee

View from above Schliersee

There were some fantastic views from up here, but there were other things to do and see as well.
There was a toboggan ride (too wet to be used?), there was a swimming pool (too cold to be used?), a bob-sleigh/train ride (too dangerous to be used?) and two dummies sawing logs..............you don't believe me do you?

Looks like one of them got a bit too close to the saw............but he is 'armless really.
Like most of the hilltop sites in Bavaria this one had a café and a chapel (this little chapel had the letters PAX above it.... meaning 'kiss of peace'):

Hilltop Chapel (and Bull) above Schliersee

Wildflower lined path from Chapel

Lovely Wildflowers

We didn't intend to visit the café, as we were enjoying sitting out in the sunshine, however that all changed when the clouds rolled in and the rain poured down:

Rain rolls in to Schliersee

Rain over Lake Schliersee

So it was hot chocolate all round in the café until the rain died down a bit and it was save to get the ski-lift back down the hill.
We headed back to the guesthouse for a well-earned rest before going out in the evening to a waterfront restaurant in Rottach................. with a few Bavarian beers to wash it down:

Lake Tegernsee at Night

Enjoying a stroll along the waterfront after our meal

The following day we took a short bus ride into the town of Tegernsee, had a stroll along the waterfront, eat some lunch in a waterfront café, then wandered through the streets of the old part of town. A nice relaxing day:

Tegernsee Waterfront

Tegernsee Old Town

The river at Tegrensee

Enjoying Tegernsee

Bridge over the river in Tegernsee

That evening we enjoyed the performance from the brass band at the waterfront bandstand in Rottach before we went for our evening meal:

Brass Band at Rottach Bandstand

Boat arrives as brass band plays

The next day Moira and I decided to take a train trip to Bayrischzell (which is south of Schliersee) while the others decided to take the train into Munich, which was less than an hour away.

Being south of Schliersee means that Bayrischzell is also higher up the Alpine valley and the train ride to it was a very enjoyable, scenic journey. It isn't a large place, more a village than a town, and as we were there in June (which lies between the end of the winter season and the start of the summer season) it was very quiet and peaceful. In fact, apart from a few locals we practically had the place to ourselves:

Refreshments at Bayrischzell

Bayrischzell Hotel

Moira in Bayrischzell

Bayrischzell Main Street

Alpine Stream

Eddie in Bayrischzell

Typical Bayrischzell House

Bayrischzell Scenery

Bayrischzell Kirche (or Kirk)

Traditional Bavarian Treats

I can safely say we had a great time in Bayrischzell.

Our next foray was a trip on the cable car up Mount Walberg with Florence & Danny. This is the largest of the Alpine foothills that sits behind Rottach and it provides some fantastic views of the Tegernsee area, as well as views of the Alps themselves:

Alpine View from Walberg

Florence & Moira on Walberg

Lake Tegernsee from Walberg

Towards the Alps

Eddie on Walberg

Flowers and Alps

Alpine Meadow

View from Rocky Spit

The views were brilliant but so were the wildflowers, here are just a few examples:

Alpine Globeflower

Heart-leaved Globe Daisy

Bavarian Gentian

As well as a treat for the eyes there was also a treat for the ears when a cattle-herder in the nearby alpine valley called his cows in from the meadow. You could hear the cow bells ringing throughout the valley:

Later on that day we visited the nearby village of Kreuth where we enjoyed a stroll alongside the river and through a local park:

The river at Kreuth

The park at Kreuth

View from park at Kreuth

Danny relaxing in park (the chair played music!)

Unusually I did not take a lot of wildlife photos when I was on this holiday, but I did grab this video of a Great-crested Grebe preening on Lake Tegernsee:

On the last day before we left Tegernsee Florence and Danny decided they wanted to revisit Schliersee and also take the train up to Bayrischzell, just as Moira and I had done previously.
The rest of us agreed to go for a car ride along the Alpenstrasse, which is a famous road that runs along the alpine valleys zig-zagging between Germany and Austria.
Our main aim was to drive to the town of Bad Tolz, taking the scenic route. Our first stop was at Sylvensteinsee, where a man-made lake (or reservoir) presented some stunning views:

Sylvensteinsee

The lake from the dam at Sylvensteinsee

This water from this lake was used to power electricity generators built into the hillside before the water was then discharged to the River Isar:

Tunnel through the hillside

Other side of tunnel

Water discharging to River Isar

We had a further stop at the small town of Lenggries for some coffee and cakes (somebody has to eat the local produce!) before driving on to Bad Tolz. We parked in the new town (although it is not that new) and crossed the River Isar to reach the historic old town: