Alan Norris from UNITED KINGDOM writes:
Wengen is perched on a large, sunny ledge, some 500 metres above the Lauterbrunnen valley, at an altitude of 1275 metres. There are glorious southerly views to the Jungfrau mountain, the icy Silberhorn ridge, and to the Jungfrau Massif in general. It is only accessible by the Wengernalpbahn cog railway, which runs from Lauterbrunnen, via Wengen, to Kleine Scheidegg (2,060 metres), from where you can take a train to Jungfraujoch, which at 3,450 metres, is the highest station in Europe. The train from Lauterbrunnen to Wengen takes just 15 minutes.
Wengen is an extremely pretty Alpine village, quite compact, with about 1,000 local inhabitants, increasing to around 5,000 at the peak of the ski season. It was a farming village for over 500 years before the British arrived at the end of the 19th Century, and it was the Brits who invented downhill skiing (as opposed to cross-country skiing), by using the then recently opened mountain railway to gain access to the slopes.
The British influence is still very strong in Wengen, where half the visitors are British, and although the local language is German (actually a dialect called Switzerdeutsch), nearly everyone speaks good English. The Downhill Only Club (DHO)is a popular British institution, based in Wengen, and which has many local Wengen members as well as British. Wengen retains all the charm of a genuine Alpine village, and has the added benefit of being "traffic free," there being only a few vehicles, mainly to take bags to the Hotels, and some taxis.
The absence of road traffic, with safe, sunny nursery slopes in the centre of the village, and the relative calm of the resort in the evenings, makes it ideal for young children. It also means that the resort is extremely busy during school half term, in mid February.
The skiing is mainly for intermediates, but there is some more challenging skiing, particularly on the Murren side of the Lauterbrunnen valley, and only 45 minutes by mountain train and cable car from Wengen. The "Jungfrau Pass" covers Wengen, Murren and Grindelwald, which is only 30 minutes away (for good skiers), via the Wengen/Mannlichen cable car.
The quickest way to the ski slopes is via the cable car, which is now in the centre of the village (behind Central Sports). This takes you to the top of Mannlichen (2230 metres) in just 6 minutes. The two cars run continuously at peak periods, and every 15 minutes at quiet periods. You exit the cable car top station onto a large plateau, which is an excellent place to do "warm up" exercises. You also benefit from the earliest sunshine on the slopes, and fantastic views of 3 magnificent mountains, the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau.
From here you have blue and red runs down towards Grindelwald, and a choice of 4-seat detachable chairs back to the top. There is also a large "off-piste" bowl, which is popular when conditions are right. Most skiers who know the region start at Mannlichen, do a number of runs there, then work their way across to Kleine Scheidegg, from where you can ski back to Wengen. Skiing directly to Kleine Scheidegg from Manlichen can be done, on red runs, in about half an hour, using 2 fast chairlifts. You would, however do well to take your time, explore the many other runs en route, and admire the breathtaking scenery.
(It is not possible to ski directly from Manlichen to Wengen, unless you are an "extreme skier", as there are no pisted runs, and the slope is extremly steep and rocky. You could, of course, download on the cable car, but then you would miss a lot!)
The other way to the ski slopes is to use the Wengernalpbahn railway. This takes you to Kleine Scheidegg (2060 metres) in half an hour, and is a good way up the mountain in bad weather, or for non-skiers, who want to join friends or family for lunch, at one of the many good restaurants to be found on the slopes.From here there are many runs, maily blue or red, towards Grindelwald, or a blue run directly back to Wengen.You can also go to the top of the Lauberhorn (2473 metres), from where there are red and black runs back to Kleine Scheidegg, and a red or a black run directly back to Wengen. The black run is the legendary Lauberhorn Race run, the longest downhill in the World Cup Downhill series.
All the runs back to Wengen join up at Allmend ( you get directly there via a blue run, or if you take the red or black , via a fast 4-seat chair from InnerWengen). From Allmend there is a blue run back to Wengen Dorf (Town), where you have to take off your skis outside Hotel Caprice. From here you have a 1 minute walk to the centre of Wengen, or, if it is lunch time, the terrace of Hotel Caprice is a great place for lunch on a sunny day, with some of the best views in the region, if not the entire Alps!
2006-11-08 |
