Appenzell

Hiking from Appenzell to Wasserauen, the trail took me through parks, villages, and right through the farmlands of the locals. The day of my hike was overcast and foggy, but when we passed this cluster of farms the sun came out and lit up the grassy fields for my picture. I continued to Wasserauen, where you can take the cableway up to Ebenalp, and the Wildkirchli cave chapel. This area is a mass of intersecting hiking trails, history, and amazing alpine scenery.

My friend Brad & I took a train from Zurich to Appenzell. He told me about a brewery there that’s been around for five generations. We walked through the 0-degree windchill on snow-packed streets, and finally found our way to Appenzeller Bier. Much to our dismay, the establishment was closed. But as we were peering through the front door, a cordial young lady named Kathrin unlocked the door and said, “we are closed, but if you’d like to come in and take a look, I’d be happy to let you in – just don’t tell anyone!” (apparently, there was a private tasting being held in the dining area of the shop). Not only did Kathrin let us in, she gave us a tour! As Brad & I were leaving, we noticed several sleighs near the entrance. “Wow, they really did a great job of staging the place,” thinking the sleighs were there as props. As we were walking to lunch, we saw a group of people sleighing down the streets – this was the group we saw doing the private tasting! The Swiss are serious about their snow transportation! You can see more photos on my blog at http://stevecookmedia.com/appenzeller-bier/.