It was raining rather hard when we awoke. We got off early - never like to hang around when we are not in a proper designated camping spot and made our way round to the end of the lake to a pretty campsite we had identified the previous day. It did not matter too much that it was raining today as Jacqui had planned to do some Keele work which meant Mike was left to do the laundry and other useful but boring jobs.
By 4pm the rain had eased and we were both desperate to get out of the van. We decided to walk the 2km back into the town centre on the lakeside path. The temperatures were somewhat lower than we have been experiencing recently and we were missing Hungary's warmth. There were also clouds of small flies that we had to avoid but they didn't appear to be biting insects. Zell am See has changed so much over the past 25 years. From being a small alpine village it is now a large bustling town but one of the biggest surprises for Jacqui was the number of Arab families that now live here. They must have been settled here for some while as there were many arabic shops and restaurants visible too.  |
| A unique nesting box |
Jacqui's mission for the afternoon was to find the 'Stadtwein' ,the hotel that she had stayed in (twice) many years ago. Despite the changes to the town she vaguely remembered its position. It remains a very traditional hotel and we enjoyed the glass of beer and wine we had there along with some memories before we headed back to the van. It was once again pouring with rain and we hoped the weather would be better tomorrow for our trip to Krimml Falls.
Saturday 29th June
We left Zell with low cloud in the skies but no rain and headed off for the waterfalls which were about an hour away. The Krimml Falls are the highest in Europe at 380m and the 5th highest in the world. In summer the water falls at 57,000L per second but this drops to around 300L per second in the winter due to lack of melt water and the fact that the precipitation falls as snow. 
We arived in Krimml to find a typical tyrolean village and found somewhere to park. It was going to cost 6 euros for the day or 8 for an overnight stop so we decided to stay for the night. What's more for that price free cake and coffee was thrown in by the local hotel.
As we got out of the van we could already hear the thunderous noise of the Falls in the distance. The Falls are in three tiers and it is a steep climb to get to the top. (There is a taxi option for some of the way for those less able/more wealthy). However the Falls were a magnificent sight and walking up was definitely our preferred option. It took us 2.5 hours including our lunchstop which we had on a bench surrounded by beautiful wild flowers. The mist created by the falls creates a lovely green ecosystem - lots of ferns and mosses to be seen.The Krimml Falls are also of historic note and the following excerpt explains how the path over the falls was used by Jewish refugees after WW2 as an escape route.
The Krimml Tauern Pass was one of the decisive bottlenecks during the escape of 5,000 Jewish men, women and children from Eastern Europe in 1947 when they fled persecution and the threat of death. Their destination was a new homeland–Palestine.
In 2013, the historic escape route from Krimml to Kasern was named National Park APC Peace Trail. So as to remember the events of those days and the people who helped the refugees, seven commemorative plaques were installed along this route.
Summer 1947, 2.00 a.m. Groups of Jewish refugees–each of between 150 and 200 from a total of around 5,000 men, women and children assembled at this very spot. Awaiting them, a fifteen hour trek on foot. Their goal–Palestine could only be reached by means of this illegal flight. Their lands of origin in Eastern Europe had been transformed into graveyards for many of their friends and relatives. Even
after the end of World War II, they were still being persecuted. The only remaining escape route by summer of 1947 was the arduous trek over the 2634 m high (8641ft.) Krimmler Tauern Pass into Italy. All other routes out of Austria were closed due to political pressure from Great Britain, the ruling power in Palestine. 200,000 Holocaust survivors were accommodated in the so-called “transit camps” in the city and province of Salzburg. One of the largest camps was “GivatAvoda” (still existing today as the Wallner Barracks) in Saalfelden, from where refugees were transported in trucks to Krimml.
On the occasion of the 60th anniversary
of this exodus, the peace initiative Alpine Peace Crossing
was founded in 2007 by Dr. Ernst Löschner. The first memorial crossing took place in the presence of ten Jewish contemporary witnesses and the, by then, 94year old Marko Feingold, who had initiated this
freedom route for the Jewish refugee aid organization Bricha (“Flight”).
Jacqui's legs were aching by the time we got down from the Falls but not so tired as to prevent her from getting to the Hotel for Apfel Strudel. After our tea we explored this quiet village further and then returned to Buster where we had an early night but not until a game of scrabble had been played.
Jacqui's legs were aching by the time we got down from the Falls but not so tired as to prevent her from getting to the Hotel for Apfel Strudel. After our tea we explored this quiet village further and then returned to Buster where we had an early night but not until a game of scrabble had been played.
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