Mount Titlis - Switzerland Hike

From Lucerne, we took a train to Engelberg where we hiked 20 minutes to a campground. At the camp it began raining but we were pretty happy since the showers were nice and warm. By 8 p.m. the weather was clearing and it was looking like the following day would be nice for a climb of Mt. Titlus. For this peak, I left Rachelle to sleep in the tent while I got up early and started up the trail.
Titlus has 3 different cable cars to reach the 10,000 foot level, with only 623 feet above that to the true summit. I made good time, passing the first transfer station at sunrise. Next was an alpine meadow section that was a fantastic view. When I arrived at the top of the second cable section I could go no further. Above me stood a huge glacier and I had nothing with me for this type of climbing. About this time, I heard the lifts start to move. Using an old trick that worked before in other situations, I walked into the gondola building and placed myself just right, eating and drinking. When the first lift operator arrived, he saw I was up bright and early and offered me a free ride to the summit. Sweet, just what I was hoping for! We couldn't speak each others language but gestures seemed to work for the little communication we had. The ride above the glacier was unbelievable. The gondola seemed to be flying in the air. This specific gondola was the first revolving cable car in the world. As it climbs, the floor slowly spins 360 degrees allowing everyone to see. I barely noticed since there were only two of us and I could freely walk around inside. There are no towers going up so the gondola is far, far from the ground and I was left marveled at the engineering of this lift.

Mount Titlus is the highest viewpoint in central Switzerland so the summit views were amazing. I only wished I had an ice axe to walk the remaining 623 feet up to the summit. Mt. Titlus has over 3,000 feet of prominence so the views on the other side would have been incredible as well. A special feature at the top is a tunnel carved in the glacier called the Glacier Grotto. They built a nice (lighted) walking path for several hundred feet inside and over 50 feet below the glacier. After soaking in all the views all alone up on top, the lift operator arrived again with his first batch of tourists. I jumped on and he took me down. From the base of the glacier, I quickly dropped several thousand feet back down to the valley floor and Engleberg.