Monday 21 July 1980 - diarist: Dave, then Nick - Pettneu to Leutkircher Hutte
Dave
Woke up very early on to a sound and light show by mother nature. [Meanwhile, the Mk IV brigade also woke - to the crunching of rubbish by a local field mouse; it took two attempts to discourage it - nearly trapped it in Colin's boot. - M] Discovered that tent was in the middle of a puddle, with a stream flowing through the top. Also the river got ominously louder. In the morning, thanks to leaky groundsheets in both tents, everyone's sleeping bag had got a bit wet, especially Ruaridh and Colin's.
The Mk IV crowd
got their tent down first and bogged off to the town. Nick and Dave followed 15
minutes later and met them at the railway station, where times of trains to
It was raining when we set off; this turned to sleet half way up, and eventually to snow near the top. The wind also rose so that it was impossible to see further than 100 yards for long periods.
Unfortunately Dave begun to feel the effects of lack of food and
the lazy day on Monday, and lagged further behind until everyone else was out
of sight. [But the rest could see him! - M] The path to the hut was easy and
gentle, but occasionally got hidden by the flying snow.
We eventually
reached the hut at about 3 pm. Much washing, drying, drinking, postcard writing,
eating and card playing. But no beer drinking!!!
Hope tomorrow's weather is better so that we can go to the next hut. Also hope that if we get bad weather again the fast people learn to use a bit of common sense.
Nick
This day was a disaster, diary wise. Maybe it was because Dave needs beer to lubricate his writing hand. There wasn't even an after dinner teewasser. Very cold outside by bedtime - freezing hard. Tomorrow we are on the R601 again, to Ulmer Hutte.
A good meal was
had at the Leutkircher Hutte. Soup (with or without sausage), and then spaghetti
or meatloaf and noodles.
2 comments:
Ah the Leutkircher Hutte. The first time we stayed there we reversed your route to Pettneu. So much easier going downhill with no snow.The third time we stayed there, my good lady and I,were the only people staying over night in poor and cold weather. The Wirt ( warden) asked us if we minded him practicing his Steirischer Harmonica. An enjoyable accordian concert ensued. Some years later we stopped there for lunch and a beer. We told the tale of the performance to the young lady who served us. The next thing he was there, bringing us schnapps. Good job we were only going downhill on a good path to St Anton. Great series of reports on the Lechtal Alps - they bring back happy memories for us.
Thanks for that comment, Cedric. The 1980 participants are also enjoying the memories. My scribbles on map 33 indicate that I've been to Leutkircher three times. It's a wonderful part of the world, and St Anton was also a good place to start a Transalp bike ride.
Post a Comment