“Where are we heading today?”
“To Männlichen. We’ll hop on the gondola cable car from Grindelwald; takes about half an hour to reach the top.”
Half an hour?!
You see, I love hiking and exploring the outdoors; I love to breathe fresh air and recharge, while surrounded by green backdrops. At the same time, however, I have an irritating fear of heights, always have and so, hanging from a tiny gondola as it sharply ascends until 2,225m (7,300 feet) was certainly not fun for me.
We got on the Grindelwald–Männlichen gondola cableway, known to be the third longest passenger-carrying gondola cableway in the world. Although the ascent gave me tremendous anxiety, the views totally made up for it. I focused on taking pictures and staying calm, and the gradual climb certainly helped.
After a 30-minute ascent, we arrived on top, to a surreal panorama of the world-famous mountains of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau.
The peaks were all covered in abundant snow, but although dressed in shorts and t-shirt, I wasn’t cold at all. We were not allowed to hike down, as it was all covered with ice and snow (in June, mind you), which is why my brother and I ventured with my four-year-old nephew to the peak of 2,343 m (7,687 feet) instead. It seemed like a breezy twenty minutes climb to the highest summit, but after a ten-minute intense hike, we were already out of breath.
We kept going, grabbing unto the sideline ropes, and making short stops, until we finally reached the top. We sat on the giant rocks and gasped with awe at the sheer beauty of it.
Looking down, I could clearly see the village of Wengen, the Lauterbrunnen Valley, as well as Interlaken in the horizon.
Looking up, Jungfraujoch was shining bright, as snow and ice are always ensured on Top of Europe at 3,454 m (11,332 feet). As I was taking it all in, I turn around to see five ladies sitting on a bench. They were cheerfully chatting as if they were in the park, catching up. They were well in their seventies, and seemingly good friends. They were adequately dressed for hiking, complete with hats and hiking boots, and as relaxed as one can be.
“Hi! Where are you from?” I find myself saying.
“We’re from Tadcaster, Yorkshire, in the UK. We come here all the time.”
“How come? Isn’t it hard to hike up here?” I say, probably sounding foolish.
“No, we always go hiking. We’re part of the Tadcaster Walking Club. This is probably my twentieth time here,” one of them leisurely mentions.
“I see … but this is not walking.”
“Yes, but we love to hike and ski. We’re actually between 70 and 81 years old.”
I was shocked. These ladies – well in their 70s and 80s – the 81 year-old admitted to still be skiing to this day, were shamefully teaching me a lesson, a 27-year-old, on how to actively live your life. It’s not about age, rather about attitude, practice and endurance. We chatted some more, after which I left them my card mentioning I will surely write about this unexpected encounter.
As we went back down, passing the restaurant and the glorious views, I reflect on life and the choices we make. These five ladies were the ultimate travelers, in the true sense of what backpackers really are, and so for the rest of the day, I had forgotten about my fear of heights.
I don’t know if the five ladies from Tadcaster, UK will ever read my post, but if they do, thank you for inspiring me!
Have you encountered travelers that truly inspired you to conquer your fears? Do share!
Tip: If the weather permits, you can take a cable car down from Männlichen to Wengen and then on down to Lauterbrunnen. This could make for a good day trip as from Lauterbrunnen you can reach some other breathtaking attractions such as the Trummelbach Falls.
