Taking up where that left off: I returned to the hut as the light rain eased off, to meet M just coming out. So we went back in. My kit to the drying room, and we have a cafe+cake, plus some apricots and hazelnuts from the supply M brought with her. And write up.As we sit inside the cloud comes and goes, with no clear trend. We were aiming to leave at 14:30 but don't till 15:00; book time is 4h so unless we grossly overrun we should make dinner. The hut-duck and chicken have been guardians of the toilets for quite a few years now.
Its a long - pleasant - traverse around from the hut before we start heading up. this gets quite steep in the zig-zags, but its all good path. Top after 1:30, pause for chocolate and water briefly as its raining and we're in cloud.
To "the knobble" ~2500 m at 2:20, then a steepish descent. The path makers have done their best but there are several boulder fields this side of the pass and if you're not comfortable hopping from one slippery-when-wet boulder to another, don't come this way in rain.
The rain stops, mostly, and the cloud breaks, somewhat: at one point we have a distant view of the FS hut before the cloud returns, but it does look a long way away, and so it proves. Sometimes we can see downvalley to the Alm and the Parkplatz, but there are a couple of kms of traverse to do. The light is fading somewhat, and M says she is tiring a bit, but she is still keeping up the pace, so we arrive in 4:15, just-in-time for dinner.
So do that quick: kase brot for me and huttenrosti for M, which we share. Better quality cheese here. In various ways it seems the hut has been tarted up since last time - in 2012? One of the chaps serving recognises us, but says we "usually bring the family", which feels weird but nice.
After dinner: shower: ah! And free. Then get a glass of red wine instead of my usual coffee.
A thing from earlier: up on the Grawawandferner, I saw a hare.
This morning, my right ankle had hurt quite a bit, rubbed sore though not raw yesterday. I'd experimented with various things: double socks, plasters to cover it, raising up the insole to lift the sensitive area above the boot leather. But at the end of the day, ointment on it to ease chaffing, and care walking, and perhaps the rest, had helped it a lot. Also the "left ankle bone" pain I'd had before has gone.
On waterproofing: my theory, before coming here, was that if it rained all day I'd just stay inside for the day. That doesn't really work, especially if there are multiple wet days. What I'd replace it with, I think, would be a rucksac-raincover, and pre-pack stuff (wallet, etc.) that I carry inside in a dry bag; and stick with the rubbish-but-lightweight raincoat and accept getting a bit wet around the edges. But keeping the rucksac dry would be good, and well worth the weight of a rucksac cover.
Diary
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