Hotel Toni Kaprun

Stayed at a beautiful spot in Austria (Saalbach) with Hilly, Stu's old friend and new Father..actually felt sorry for him, the poor sod was knee deep in relatives, in laws, newly purchased crib and nappies, etc.....we stayed for afew days and it was neatly timed with the arrival home of new born Frankie. Hilly's place is 3 feet from a field of horses so Lauren was easily kept busy with feeding duties.

Stu tried ...

We took a bus from Salzburg over to Berchtesgaden, Germany which is only about 45 minutes. It's nestled in the Bavarian Alps. We stayed on the outside of the city in a little Bed and Breakfast. It is usually cheaper to stay in a B&B then in a hostel (if the town has a hostel). We thought it would be much easier to find cheap hostels here but in Austria and Germany we're finding it harder and harder. But this place was great ...

... Center and also the new, more accessible entrance to the bunkers (no steep flights of a hundred steps). There was a lot of reading and information that we did not have time to take in. We got to see portions of the bunkers and the long staircase from which the bunkers used to be entered. It was all fenced off; in fact the hotel above is now levelled. I was not as impressed with this portion as I had been 25 ...

... of challenge and reward, leading ultimately right back to the farmhouse and that long-desired beer. There was a smell of burning coming from my rear brakes!

We packed ready for departure. Keith and Manu joined us for dinner, serving up a lovely home-made quiche followed by goulash made from one of the farm's own cows, and a home-baked apple-strudel. All great stuff.

... a little drop into a berm and I managed to confuse myself into doing something stupid and taking a brief trailside lie down. This is a trail with big, steep, fast, bermed sections and is fun to ride in sections and a bit scary in others, particularly on a 4" lightweight XC racing bike. Down at the bottom it goes a bit 4x and you can walk back up and practice this section, which is good, fast ...

Another lovely farm-fresh breakfast. We had bought 2-day lift passes for Skiwelt so spent a second consecutive day there. Katie used the lifts and went walking along the top from above Scheffau toward Ellmau then down the funicular railway there.

Keith and I took the lift up from Scheffau. A lovely, blue, sunny day. The nature of the riding took a significant step up today. We practiced ...

... for days after all! Our tour guide freaked us out slightly by telling us he had something special to tell us, then not telling us what it was. Had we won a prize? Had our holiday been cancelled? Would we have no accommodation? We had to wait till halfway to Kitzbuehel to find out. It was that there was a triathlon going on right around our hotel so we might not be able to get to the Welcome meeting the next morning as the road was going to be closed ...

... After descending Kitzsteinhorn, we visited the nearby Mooserboden hydroelectric plant. It consists of 2 dammed reservoirs built high up in the mountains and accessed by narrow roads cut through small tunnels directly in the mountain side as well as an ingeneous platform lift that can carry a fully loaded passenger bus up and down a near vertical mountain slope. The ...

August 26-Monday
We left Kitzbuhel at 8:30. There was a brief stop in Berchtesgarden, in Germany, at 10:00. Up on the side of the mountain, we could see Hitler's Eagle’s Nest. It was rather chilling to see that part of history. The bunker is now a restaurant. Our rest stop overlooked a valley filled with wonderful homes. What a view! Back on the bus and on to Salzburg. Time 10:35.

... KitzbuhelWe woke up at 7:00 am, feeling refreshed and ready to go. There was a buffet breakfast consisting of cold meats, cheeses, fruit, fresh yogurt, bread, cereal, jams and sweet bread… a very filling meal for our first full day in Kitzbuhel. Off we went, browsing our way along through town. All the buildings and homes were beautifully decorated and neat. Flower boxes hung everywhere…from every house. Every yard, no matter how small, had ...