Austria
August 7 to 29, 2010
Alpinolino
raetseltour
After we had finished our Fleiding hike and the kids had a bit more play time, we took the lift down to the middle station and from there we started the animal quiz tour - a series of question and answer stations along the hike down to the village. At each answer station the kids punched their cards to spell the final word. Along the way we stopped at the old middle station restaurant to have some icecream (despite the weather forecast, it was hot and sunny the whole way down!) and play on the tire ride, the little toy cars, the zip line, the trampoline... man, the playgrounds around here are the best! Christopher also enjoyed watching a big logging truck moving some logs at one of the farms along the way and then both kids had fun pretending to be squirrels for the last half of the hike. Finally we arrived back at the lift station in town where the kids proudly handed in their punch cards and received their buttons, hiking certificates and gummi bears.
At the start of the Alpinolino animal quiz tour.
Christopher chooses the cow gate instead of going across the road grate.
The kids stop to cool off and play by a little stream.
At the first quiz station - who made these tracks?
The answer station reveals it's the fox.
And not only do we get to punch our quiz cards, we get stamps for our hiking passports too!
Some wood carving art along the way.
The kids pretending to be little sheep and pigs in a hay barn.
This logging truck might very well have been the highlight of the day for Christopher!
Christopher is still going strong... he hasn't been carried at all yet today!
Rubby waiting for us to catch up.
More cool farm machines.
At the badger station.
Christopher and Samantha befriend a little cat. Both the kids commented on how tiny the Austrian cats are.
We didn't want to tell them that Oreo is just overweight!
A cute little garden house.
Lots of butterflies in the meadows.
More logging trucks at work... did we mention that Christopher likes trucks?!
Snack time!
Schwammerl! Unfortunately there were not enough to warrant any picking.
Farmhouse rooftop.
Old skis and baby shoes being recycled. :)
Arriving at the Alte Mittelstation restaurant.
The kids love this cool tipsy tire swing.
The kids get twister popsicles as a reward for all their great hiking today.
Opa must have been a good hiker too today! ;-)
Rubby gets a fruit cup.
Christopher is working on his popsicle.
Samantha manages to convince Opa to share his ice cream with her.
The kids have fun playing with the little toy cars.
Sam has a turn on the trampoline.
Some horse balsam and herbal bath oils along with barrels for guests to soak their tired feet in.
Samantha at the squirrel station.
We check out the squirrel cage but all the squirrels are gone.
A beautiful day for a hike.
Some bee houses.
Lots of yummy raspberries along the way.
Wheeee! Be careful not to go too fast down the hill!
We passed several waterfalls along the way today.
The path seems precarious enough for hiking in some areas but
we were even more amazed to see the mountain biker racing along here!
Samantha having fun popping "Touch me not" seed pods.
Near the end of the animal quiz trail we had to wait for another family to finish their turn at the station.
Finally it's our turn and Christopher tries to figure out the answer.
Mini horses!
Awwww... a photo to blackmail the kids with when they're older. *grin*
Christopher is obviously in a schmoozy mood today!
The kids say hello to some bunny rabbits along the way.
I think Christopher would have liked to take one home!
Sam collecting payment for anyone who wants to cross the bridge.
Not sure what's going on with these 2 slugs...
The last quiz question.
This station is actually part of a new "Wellness trail" in Westendorf. How's *that* for fancy wood piling?!
The last answer station is back at the lift station in town.
The kids hand in their animal quiz cards to collect their prizes.
Sam and Christopher with their Alpinolino buttons, certificates and gummi bear treats.
austria menu:
still to come:
august 20-29