[Previous post: part 2]

The next day the sun came out and we could see the mountain tops from Wengen! We debated which high summit to go to and settled on Schilthorn rather than the super popular Jungfraujoch (covered in snow and known as the “top of Europe”) to avoid some of the crowds and the need for advance reservations and winter boots. We didn’t have time to do both and the cable cars to the peaks are fairly expensive. We took the train down the mountain to Lauterbrunnen again, and this time took the bus to Stechelberg and then (very crowded) cable cars to Gimmelwald, Mürren, Birg, and finally Schilthorn. We went directly from cable car to cable car on the way up to reach the summit before there was danger of afternoon clouds, although it ended up being sunny all day.

Schilthorn’s summit is at 9,744 feet, the highest we went on our trip. The cable car system is currently under construction as they build bigger, faster cable cars to transport more people in coming years.

There are beautiful views at the top, as well as a revolving restaurant (Plz Gloria) and a small James Bond museum commemorating the 1969 movie On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, that was filmed on this peak and in the revolving restaurant. We ate our picnic lunch at the summit and watched people paragliding — a sport that seems both wonderful and absolutely terrifying.

After we had our fill of Schilthorn we took the cable car back down to Birg (summit at 8,806 feet) and enjoyed more views and a “thrill walk.” Yes, I walked on the glass platform but I didn’t let go of the handrail and I tried not to look down!

After all the views and thrills we took the cable car down to Mürren (5,374 ft) for an afternoon hike.

Next up: Part 4: Northface hike