Exploring Austria's Beauty
Of all the countries I visited on the tour, Austria was definitely one of the most beautiful. On the trip I fell in love with Germany, Austria, Switzerland and parts of Netherlands (i.e. Edam).
In Austria, we stayed in a small town named Hopfgarten. The town was so small you could go from one side to the other on a bike in maybe twenty minutes, and by foot in maybe thirty or forty minutes. The town was a very quaint and peaceful place, full of breathtaking views, a very green and picturesque countryside, and the cutest little town houses with bell-adorned cows you've ever seen.
White Water Rafting In Austria
Before we arrived into the town, earlier in the day, we all went white water rafting. We split up into groups of nine or ten, got suited up, met our guide, and carried our raft down to the water. Because the river is so cold (probably around 40 degrees fahrenheit ), we all had to walk into the water and submerge ourselves to get our bodies acquainted with the water temperature. The water is so cold that without doing this first, if you fall in you can go into shock or experience heart palpitations.
Neither of these sounded like a pleasurable experience, so I waded in and jumped under the water. Thankfully with the wet suit, spray jacket, life vest, and helmet it didn't feel that cold.
The river was awesome to raft. The weather was overcast, but calm and refreshingly cold. And the water was an amazing almost glacier like blue color. Our guide explained that this was because the water that powers the rapids comes down from very pure ice caps up in the mountains. It was an extremely beautiful place to raft - very green, very cold, and very peaceful despite the rapids. I highly recommend it!
This turned out to be one of my favorite optional excursions of the trip. The river was pretty calm for the most part, but we also encountered several awesome rapids and all got soaking wet. We even tried standing up on the sides on one rapid, and all got to jump in and do flips off the boat later in the ride. In total it lasted about an hour and half, and it turned out to be very well worth the money. Don't miss out on this optional excursion!
Biking The Hopfgarten Countryside
The following day, we had all day in Hopfgarten to look around and explore the town. In the morning most of the group went for a mountian bike ride through the countryside. And what another awesome excursion this was. When it was all over I couldn't help but think that biking the Austrian countryside, may be the signle best way to see the the town, it's mountians and real beauty of Hopfgarten (and Austria).
In total we rode 25K. The first leg of the ride was 18K, and was the most physically exhausting part of the ride - although we all stopped about every five or ten minutes to regroup, get water and rest for a bit. After the first leg, we stopped for an awesome BBQ lunch of brautwurst, potatoes, and salad. And after lunch, we rode leisurely (all either down hill or on flat terrain) back 7K to our hotel.
The scenery on the ride was amazing. The Austrian countryside is sprinkled with cute, quaint houses with flower boxes full of blooming red flowers hanging from the outside window sills. Many houses also have cattle, all fully equipped with ringing and clanking bells so that the farmers can always hear where their animals are. Definitely one of the best optional excursions of the trip. Make sure to take your camera and relax and enjoy the ride!
Exploring The Town Of Hopfgarten
After the 2 1/2 hour bike ride, we all relaxed at the hotel for a while and then headed into town on our bikes to make the most of our free time. We didn't have much time (as the bikes had to be back by 5 PM), so we quickly checked out the main town, the beautiful church of Hopfgarten, and then headed up to the top of the mountain.
The best thing to do in Hopfgarten, besides the countryside bike ride, is to take a series of lifts up to the highest peak in the area. There you'll get a breathtaking three-hundred and sixty degree view of the area, the Swiss Alps, and all the surrounding mountain ranges and towns for miles and miles around. To get to the top you head to the big parking lot in town, walk up to the first lift and pay your 11 Euro for an all day pass. Then you embark on your three-part journey to the top!
The view on the way up is incredible! You slowly begin to see more and more of the area and the surrounding mountain ranges, as you move higher and higher up the mountain. To get to the top, you take a total of three lifts. The first is a closed six-persion lift. The second is a standard three-person ski lift. And the last is a rickey single-persion little chair lift - where you pull a small metal chain across your waist and insert the pin at the end to "secure" yourself into the seat. It's a little challenging if you're afraid of heights. But it's so worth it for the views you'll experience at the top.
At the top, there's a great restaurant and cafe where we all got cappucinos and desert. I got a delicious and quite extravagent banana split! And at the restaurant there's plenty of outside seating to enjoy the views. There's even a thirty-foot round seating area that slowly turns around so you can get the full three-hundred and sixty degree view of the area. Like I said, the thirty-minute trip is well worth it for the beautiful view (and delicious food) you'll get at the top!
It was an awesome day spent with Jess and Courtney! And one of the most beautiful, and peaceful stops of the trip - except for maybe Switzerland. And although there's not much night life (like at all) in the town, Hopfgarten is well worth it for the beautiful countryside and peaceful environment.
(Sidenote: If you go to Hopfgarten, the restaurant "Eat & Beat" (don't ask!) has the best nachos I've ever had. And is a very cool place to eat and hang out with friends.)
- September 16th, 2006
- By Daniel Scrivner
