31-Mar-2001 -- This should be an easy one to carry out:
drive the Motorway A12 from Innsbruck to Vorarlberg, turn left into a valley called Montafon,
leave the car in St Gallenkirch, walk some 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) south-east on a dirt road
along a River called Jll (pronounced [ ill ], funny name for english people I guess).
Then, 600 m (2000 ft) through a little wood heading south-west, and there we are at 47N010E.
It was so clear on the map .....
Ah yeah, think twice Bucky!
Everything worked according to schedule until this "600m - little - wood - thing"!
Lots of fences, private property just between me and my spot.
And more, this map said nothing about the 3rd dimension, steepness especially.
OK, so lets walk around this, on a dirt road which seems to be a Lumberjack-Trail.
Well, this also wasn´t one of the bright ideas this afternoon, for this trails's getting smaller and steeper
every minute, vanishing finally in thick brushwood, loose rocks and gravel and countless little creeks due to snow melt going on.
But my companion GPS doesn't lie, this is the correct direction.
Or isn´t it ?
Again this useless piece of silicon is annoying me: "Weak Signal, are You in a Building ?"
OK, so where's the next glade at this end of the known world ?
Right, over there a piece of blue sky is blinking through the treetops.
But wait!
This is it: my "never-leave-you-in-bad-times-friend" GPS displays almost that certain "Lines of Zeros",
as some Confluencers call that final, well deserved reward.
A few more steps.
I stand on a clearing, several little huts, a barbecue fireplace, a little artificial pond.
And just in time the sun is breaking through the clouds, shining warm over this idyll and
a breath-taking long sight as well.
Locating the exact intersection of longitude and latitude and taking the photos was
within schedule again.
The way back really turned out easy:
a short trail downwards, leading to an asphaltic road, within minutes I stand where I started some
three hours ago, at a little inn near that river Jll called "Fischer´s Fritz" ....oh well.....
As planned this morning, I eat a cup of a local speciallity at "Fritz´s": "Leber-Spätzle-Suppe"
(little meat-balls made of liver, served with a clear soup), a must for lovers of Grandma's Kitchen!
After strolling through that woods, getting wet to the skin and almost frozen stiff, I would have
eaten up anything, as long as it´s hot, steamy hot ....
c ya
Mike ;-)