Innsbruck morning hike

It was a misty morning, damp and humid with a slight summer drizzle in Innsbruck, Austria. After a superb dinner at L’osteria, an Italian eatery strongly recommended by our receptionist, we had a refreshing sleep and were up by 0530 hours.

The constant intake of beer and wine induced by the relaxed atmosphere and beautiful environs, was taking its toll on the waist. Plagued by a guilt feeling, we decided that a mountainous hiking trail was what the doctor ordered to start our day. The mountains beckoned to us from the window of our hotel room.

Armed with a jacket, just in case the Dubai residents suddenly felt cold, we set off towards what the local Austrians call the jump, thinking that would be fairly exacting trek. 

Guided by instinct and a nose for the slightly adventurous, we crossed the underpass at Tivoli, past the Olympic stadium towards what seemed some residential quarters. The quarters past a corn field were pretty ordinary with no architectural stand out aspect. 

Crossing the road at this juncture our ears perked at the tinkling sound of water. We spied the running river amongst the tall trees playing hide and seek with us. Tall trees by the river banks seemed to protect and maintain the pristine waters splashing, gurgling and cheerfully running against the rocks. There was no way to walk to the water from the road as the banks were fenced off and there was also a thick growth greenery. The grey skies reflected in the water threw of mists at a distance. We stood by for a few moments listening to the gentle pleasant sound of water.

Walking towards the mountains, against the flow of water, on the clean but narrow pavement, we came to a railway line. Overhead was the highway and to our left were pedestrian steps leading to a 4.6 km hiking trail. Simply following our instincts, we took the route. Whizzing beneath us as we crossed the pedestrian path, were cars headed towards Munich or Munchen, Salzburg. 

A small winding path, past the open air restaurant, below another level of mountain highway was the starting point of our trek.  There was a row of cars parked and we assumed that joggers, walkers and bikers must have already started the journey far ahead in time.

The first breath of mountain air was exhilarating. The air was rich with the fragrance of leaves and loam. We fastened our pace to enter the trek. The path was laid out with small stones surrounded by tall pine trees. The trees with their brown barks were towering over us. There were many inroads swerving away from the main track. The straight arms of the trees rose upwards as far as we could strain our neck. The undergrowth of shrubs and bushes in shades of green covered the clumpy mattress of the forest floor.

By this time, we were quite some distance from the city. Apart from the typical highway sounds of fast moving tires on asphalt, the call of the birds was pleasing to the ear. Already the tall pines seemed to be absorbing the sound pollution and transferring much needed oxygen to our lungs. The initial trail was steep and we trudged along with our recently increased weight and sheepishly noted the strong legs of a passing jogger. 

Now surrounded completely by giant pines, light filtered down from the rising sun. Further up, the ground was filled with brown remnants of branches and needles from the pine trees. Blue skies were spotted as the clouds cleared and we tried to identify a black kite or a common buzzard! There were many  small bird houses perched on the branches of the tree along the way. Some the of tree trunks had been chopped off from its base and some had naturally fallen. 

As we moved along the path , the trees cleared, offering us stunning views of Innsbruck city . The low lying clouds over the city cleared now and then . We stood and soaked in the wonder of nature . The sweet perfume of the forest combined with the invigorating walk in the peace of the morning was soul stirring. Watching the clouds move about lazily in the sky reminded us that the journey is as important if not more than the destination . 

Some pictures from the trail 

Bird house  

Fallen trees.. Natural and other causes

We did this

Inwards and outwards.