Hanging out at the top of Germany, 1 of 4

Previously, I wrote about the ways to ascend to the highest point in Germany, the Zugspitze, in the Bavarian Alps.

I rode the Bayerische Zugspitzbahn railway from Garmisch to Eibsee, followed by the steep Eibseeseilbahn cable-car/aerial tramway directly to the summit. Although the mid-level clouds earlier in the morning looked like a no-go, I “broke through” the clouds into clear blue skies at the Zugspitze summit. As clouds continue to roll in and out, up and over the summit, I stayed at the summit for a number of hours in the glorious sun to snap away at the scenery around and below.

There is a truckload of photos to fill many posts and pages, but I’ve selected plenty for the following series of four posts to describe and show the view at the Zugspitze summit:

• part 1 (the post you’re reading now) is on the German side of Zugspitze,
• parts 2 and 3 are over on the Austrian side of the summit,
• and part 4 is a final set of photos from the German side, after much of the cloud below cleared.

Walking from one side of the summit to the other only takes ten minutes, even with the ever-present crowds in the way! Besides, with the pointy craggy summit at 2960 metres (9710 feet) above sea level, it’s not very far where one can wander off.

Downstairs to the Eibsee cable car, or the Zugspitzplatt.

Upstairs to the summit to view the cross, or over to Austrian side.

Summit temp. -12C (+10F), summit winds 17 km/h (11 mph), windchill -20C (-4F), visibility 30 km (19 mi). In the valley below in Garmisch-Partenkirchen: +5C (41F).

Bergstation (Upper station), Bayerische Zugspitzbahn. Yeah, it really does look that cold.

Background through the frozen fog/mist, left-to-right: Alte Zollhütte, Meteorologischer Turm, Münchner Haus, broadcast tower for Austrian ORF

Münchner Haus (Munich House): German Alpine Association (Deutscher Alpenverein) shelter-hut, built in 1897.

Mailbox with address & postcode: Münchner Haus, D-82475, Zugspitze.

With address and post-code “Münchner Haus, D-82475, Zugspitze”, this Deutsche Post mailbox at an altitude of 2960 metres (9710 feet) is the highest mailbox in Germany. When the post office is open, you can have outgoing mail stamped with “Zugspitze”, just as you would in any Deutsche Post in a German town below.

How did I get up to the top of Germany? You can read about my ascent to Zugspitze here.

Have you also gone up to the highest point in Germany? Please leave your comments below!

The series:

• Ascent to Zugspitze
• Zugspitze summit : part 1, German side (this post)
• Zugspitze summit : part 2, Austrian side
• Zugspitze summit : part 3, Austrian side, after the clouds cleared
• Zugspitze : part 4, the summit and the plateau below

The windchill estimate above was obtained from the U.S. NWS Wind Chill Index and from the Environment Canada Windchill Calculator. I made the photos above on 9 October 2011. This post is originally published on Fotoeins Fotopress (fotoeins.com).