photos around GAP - 10 -
by MrBill
These do not really count as tips, but then again, what is better than a good photo to tell a story? Ironically, through the trick of the lens, you can make a good picture almost anywhere. If you filter out the cars, the overdevelopment, the noise, the camera captures only what you want. But, do a couple of hundred meters of river front compensate for the loss of hundreds of hectares of field and forest that have been paved over to make room for commercial activities?
Hollentalklamm
by MrBill
If you take the hike up from Garmisch-Partenkirchen ý Hammersbach about a 500 meter climb ý you get to the Hollentalklamm. This pass follows the course of a stream, which has over the Millennia turned into gorge.
What makes it interesting, or esoteric if you will, is that around circa 1895 or so, they discovered some kind of fuel oil deposits trapped in the rock, and set about building a railroad up there to extract it. You cannot believe where they hacked that narrow gauge track into the cliffs and along the watercourse. Testimony to manýs ingenuity in the pursuit of profit, but also a good 50-years before anyone had ever heard of an environmental assessment. Most of the tracks are gone, and those that remain are only twisted pieces of metal spaghetti to remind you how temporal even concrete and metal are compared to mountains.
The hike is cut through the rocks in a series of paths and caves, largely unchanged, and long since grown back to hide the scars. Now it is a pleasant 2-hour hike up, and if you want you can carry on another 2-hours to the Oesterfelderkopf or put on your climbing gear and do the Klettersteig to the Zugspitze, the highest mountain in Deutschland.
Nothing tastes better than a cold beer after a long, hot climb
best pizza in town
by MrBill about La Lapanto
So, normally you might associate Garmisch-Partenkirchen with Bavarian food, but GAP has always attracted many foreigners, and some stay and open up local restaurants with other cuisines. In our case, we really like La Lapantos authentic southern-Italian style pizzas. They have very thin crusts and are big enough to satisfy the biggest appetite after skiing. The prices are very reasonable and we like the family atmosphere. There are other Italian restaurants in GAP, but we like this one the best.
Only On Clear Days
by clunker
Make sure that the sky's are clear before you go to the top of the Zugspitze. The day we went was overcast, and to be fair, they warned us at the ticket booth that the views wouldn't be great, and suggested we try again the next day. We stubbornly went anyway. It ended up being a waste of money(and time). We were the only ones up there that weren't skiing. It still seemed a bit impressive, where you could see through breaks in the clouds, but I'm sure on a sunny day, it would have been absolutely incredible.