Penkenjoch

First lesson of this day was don’t waste time trying to drive to the top of a lift to save on some cable car money (my idea). The result was a VERY narrow hairpin mountain road with very few barriers and very steep drops (why is it that holding on to the door inside the car in these situations somehow helps the nerves?!). Halfway up this nerve racking road we then got to a barrier that you clearly only get a pass for if you live this high up the mountain. So back down we went, and after some deliberation about options, we boarded the Finkenbergen Almbahnen cable car to its middle station.

Up up and away leaving Finkenberg way down in the distance.

Getting out at the middle station, we set off on path 22b.

The path had intermittent interesting educational boards about the wildlife and the area. There were even a couple of experiments set up to do en-route.

There were also the obligatory cows with bells, which is the perfect finishing touch to any alpine walk!

We then turned uphill and followed path 57, where a spot of lunch and some Evie wiggle time were required

Onwards, we nearly had to leave Tim behind as he was too big for the gateways!

A steep up for a while but then we arrived at the top of the lift on the Penken. What better way to arrive on a hill top than through an amazing adventure playground (as exciting for the big kids as the younger ones!)

Once this amazing course was scaled, we went and enjoyed a drink at the brand new beautiful mountain restaurant, the Granatalm, before having to also have a play on the little kids playground (Evie gave us a pass!). Meet Pepi Bear!

And yes, I did go inside the bear, crawled through the adventure park inside the bear (crawled as it was designed for smaller people) and down the slide. The slide was so fast I shot out the end and was removing wood chips out of my top for the next hour! I expect smaller people would have stopped at the base of the slide…..

Talk about a full in great set up at the top of a lift. Something for everyone.

Before heading down we stopped off at the new chapel, the Granatkapelle at 2,087m. Intriguing from the outside, beautifully simple inside, it is a sight to behold.

It was time to head down the 22a path, as the lifts stopped at 4.45, but we could continue to enjoy these views every step of the way.

We even managed time for one final drink on the balcony of the Almstuberl restaurant to sit an absorb the mountain views after our final walk in the big mountains for this holiday. What a beautiful day it was.