InnsbruckPersonal travel impressions in stories and pictures from Innsbruck, Austria. Click on the pictures to enlarge, send as a free e-card, or download for personal use. You can locate Innsbruck and navigate the world using Google Earth Show on map
N 47° 16.002
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One of the most scary experiences I ever had was in Austria. On one of my Interrail trips, I decided to stay a few days in Innsbruck and walk in the mountains from there. I have always been a lover of the mountains and there is a structural shortage of them in my own country. This explains why, soon after arriving in the town, I was on the way up with a small rucksack to make a walking tour of two days, completely alone. It was like stepping into a different world. I met a lot of people on the way, stayed in a hut where a lot of fat food could be eaten, and it was great to feel the mountain air around me, not to hear any traffic, which I had been so used to for years when cycling in the mountains.
The second day I set out early like everyone else, but for some reason I walked completely alone quite soon. I hoped to return to Innsbruck by just following one of the coloured paths which I had been told were very fit for beginners like me, without special equipment or shoes. The weather was perfect and I truly enjoyed the day. After having crossed the ridge, I walked on an area with small stones, which suddenly began to move. Looking forward and back, I realized that I had walked into a dangerous position. I had ended up in some landslide of grit, and I now saw that this began high above me and ended deep down below me. Over hundreds of metres down, nothing else than grit...
I tried to cling to the ground, in order for the stones to stop moving. Fortunately, I succeeded. But then I realized that there was only one way out: forward, although still some hundred metres remained. There was no way in which I could get help from anyone, I had to save myself. I moved onward on all fours, slowly slowly, while my heart was beating like crazy. Sometimes, another stone would start to move, moving down and setting other stones in motion as well. I was terrified. When I finally arrived at the other side, I was shaking all over my body, and I could not stand anymore, my legs were trembling too much. I realized the danger which I had just run...
