When exploring the Bernese Oberland we often stay at Camping Jungfrau in the village of Lauterbrunnen. With a total of 72 waterfalls cascading down the cliff sides, the Lauterbrunnen Valley is also known as the Valley of the Waterfalls, and it is only a few minutes walk from the campsite to one of these; the Staubbach Falls.
Dropping 297 metres from an overhanging cliff to the valley floor below the sight and sound of the Staubbach is impressive. If you don’t mind a short but steep climb there is a path, partly set into the cliff face that takes you behind the lower part of the waterfall allowing you to look through the water as it descends to the rock below.
The walk itself runs from Lauterbrunnen to Stechelberg at the far end of the valley and is around 8km long, and although the route is relatively flat and undemanding, it is by no means dull. Leaving the Staubbach Falls behind you, you make your way through the lush green meadows, past traditional Swiss chalets and farmhouses, aware only of the sounds of the Lütschine river and the tinkling of the bells of the resident cows.
The trail follows for the main part the path of the Lütschine river and, having crossed over the river you soon pass by the Lauterbrunnen Heliport.
From this heliport you can book a helicopter flight with ‘Scenic Air’ that will take you past the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau before crossing the valley to the peak of the Schilthorn and bringing you back down to terra firma once more.
Continuing past the heliport and along the side of the river you will come across numerous stacks of small rocks and stones.
These balanced piles have been created by other walkers and we always take a moment to add our own stack before continuing along the valley to the Trümmelbach Falls.
Set inside the mountain, the Trümmelbach Falls are the largest underground waterfalls in Europe and carry the meltwater of the Jungfrau Glacier down into the valley.
There are over ten cascades that you can reach through various passages and steps within the mountain with viewing platforms along the way. Carrying on average over 20,000 litres of water per second the falls thunder past you and over the years have carved out the most beautiful shapes in the rock. When you are standing next to such a natural force you cannot help but feel just a little intimidated as the mountain itself seems to rumble at times, but climbing to the top of the falls you reach daylight and a seemingly still, and perfectly blue pool of glacier water before it starts its final descent to the valley below.
Leaving the falls behind and continuing the walk along the valley you will reach the Mürrenbachfall on the opposite side, which is the highest waterfall in Switzerland at 417 metres. Although not as well known, and perhaps not as impressive as Trümmelbach, the Mürrenbachfall is nonetheless a beautiful waterfall.
The water cascades down from the ledge above the valley where the village of Mürren sits and seems to coat the rocks with a shimmering haze before joining the Lütschine. It is here that you can take a cable car up to Mürren and in fact the cable car passes across the front of the waterfall giving a close-up view to those inside.
If you do decide to head up in the cable car there are lovely walks to be taken from the village, or you can of course continue your journey upwards to reach the Schilthorn but that, as they say is another story!
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We'll see you down the trail