For most of us, even local leisure travel is prohibited at the moment (obviously for good reason). Perhaps you’re permitted to go outside freely, but any destination you’d have in mind to visit, even for a daytrip, is probably closed to visitors for the moment. This won’t last forever, but at the same time we shouldn’t expect that once the restrictions are eased, we’ll be able to hop a flight to Barbados or Tanzania the next day.
It’s rather likely that, until the pandemic is under control worldwide, many of us will be restricted to visiting places within our own country or region. For this reason, I’m going to do a small series on some interesting places to visit in my region, Bavaria. If you live near me, maybe this will get you thinking about paying an overdue visit to some beautiful places in your very own backyard! If not, allow me to introduce you to this lovely part of Germany. 🙂 Hopefully this series will also inspire you to explore interesting places to see near your home once it is possible to do so. It’s not only necessary right now, but travel close to home is also more environmentally friendly, and you might be surprised what you discover when you take a closer look at your own little corner of the world!
First destination: Partnachklamm
The Partnachklamm (Partnach Gorge in English), located just outside Garmisch-Partenkirchen in southern Bavaria (Germany), is an incredibly beautiful, narrow and deep gorge carved by a rushing river coming down into the valley from the Alps above.
It’s easily reached from the town, and with good train connections to/from Munich it makes for a great daytrip, although there is more than enough to see in the area to warrant a multi-day stay, with Garmisch or one of the nearby towns as a base.
The hike through the gorge is relatively easy, but it can be slippery so sturdy shoes with a good tread are essential, and with the cold water rushing through the gorge it can be quite chilly, even on hot days. The out and back trip from the Olympic Stadium (the closest parking is here) takes 1-2 hours, depending upon your pace and how long you stop to gawk and photograph the beauty of the place!
The gorge is open year-round, but can close without warning due to weather, maintenance or repair work (or global virus pandemics, as is currently the case), so it’s always a good idea to check the official website (www.partnachklamm.eu) for the current status before departing. There is a small charge to enter the gorge, currently (as of early 2020) €6 for adults/€3 youths.
For those looking for an all-day excursion with a little more hiking involved, it’s easy to keep going after exiting the upper part of the gorge, all the way up to the Berggasthof Eckbauer (normally open mid-March through October), where lunch with a stunning view awaits. From there it’s possible to get back down via the Eckbauerbahn (cable car), or on foot. There is also a lovely wellness hotel with restaurant, located about 20 minutes’ walk above the top of the gorge and with its own private cable car for guests, so if you wish you can even stay overnight or longer. Contact me for more information and booking requests!
A quick note on the photographs: these images were taken during two different visits, one in autumn and the other in winter. The gorge is beautiful in any season, but different in every season, so even if you’ve visited before I highly recommend going again at a different time of year.
