It was a lazy, rainy morning but we were okay with that because Marianne told us of a new self-serve laundry that opened in Garmisch and boy did we have some laundry to do!  The drive to Garmisch was of course, breath-taking.  The back drop is the beautiful Bavarian Alps.

If you think this picture doesn’t look real, it doesn’t look real in person either.

After laundry and cruising the main area of town  we needed to find the cable car and train leading up to the Zugspitze so we would be prepared when a clear day came.  Presently we had mostly cloudy and rainy days which would make the experience pointless since it’s about the view, not the climb.  After Den popped into the station to get the details we were all wondering what to do.  I could see a little lake peeking through the trees and was craving adventure or I knew I would need to have a nap.  It started to rain again and the kids fussed about not wanting to get out and walk in the rain.  We went anyway, getting outside always diminishes the crabbies.

We weaved through the parking lot, passed a hotel, over a foot bridge and there it was, Lake Eibsee, in all it’s beauty, resting at the feet of Mt. Zugspitz.

The lake was actually turquoise! The path was wide and flat and it felt good to just walk and not think about falling off the ledge!  People of all ages were out on the path: runners, elderly couples with umbrellas, lovers.  It was nice to see people just enjoying the day, taking in the majestic feel of this lake.

Peace, tranquility and thankfulness all rolled into one moment.

Skipping rocks, is there anything better?

So there’s this trail, and us, moving like a herd of turtles.  Somewhere in the midst of our walk, Den decided we’d walk all the way around the lake but forgot to tell us.   It was a huge lake and it became quite the task.  So much that the girls became that tired, goofy way, where everything is funny and then they moved even SLOWER, because they would have to stand still, looking at each other laughing with no noise coming out, you know the feeling.  This in turn made their dad crazy because he was trying to, “make some tracks.”  Den up ahead, girls way behind and me in the middle trying to keep the peace, encouraging the girls to hurry along and remind Den it’s about the journey, not the destination.  Such an ordeal.

Later we found out the path around the lake was 5 miles.

Here’s a pic of Lake Eibsee from the top of Mt. Zugspitze.  No wonder we were tired!