Day 53 – Pfronten to Tannheim

Daily Distance – 19km
Daily Ascent – 1130m
Daily Descent – 930m
Total Distance – 879km
Distance Remaining – 134km

I increasingly find that I have no recollection of where I am. I have thought for much of today that my destination was Trondheim, before realising that Trondheim is actually in Norway. I do know that I will reach Oberstdorf in two more stages, but totally failed to recall the name of the hut at which I will be staying tomorrow night when the receptionist enquired. I don’t know if this is too much sun, or simply a side effect of walking each day to a new place. Probably both. My usual start time of 07:00 will be brought forward tomorrow to best avoid the sun on what promises to be a tough day. Not a huge distance at only 20km, but with 1800m of elevation gain and 1000m of those to be tackled first thing in the morning I would like to get that done before the temperatures rose too much. With tomorrow being a ridge walk I also suspect that there will not be much water to be had en-route, so the carry weight will be heavy, although I will do my best to “camel-up” by drinking plenty tonight and first thing in the morning.

There is not much to mention about today’s walking. The uphill was a long slog, with admittedly beautiful views at the end. I had brief conversations with a group of English guys on a climbing course and a presumably Austrian man about cameras and the limitations of digital zoom on smartphones. Otherwise, it was a long downhill and then a long tarmac road above Tannheim, which was baking in the afternoon heat. I am happy to have avoided a sunburn since the very early days of the trip, but do have a little work to do on evening up my tan lines.

For the first time during this trip I have my own kitchen! Perhaps it’s an Austrian peculiarity, but having provided pots, pans and plates, I am yet to discover any cooking or eating utensils. I have cooked and eaten steak, eggs and onions tonight using a titanium spork and penknife. Do people in Austria travel with their favourite cutlery for situations like this?