Scenic Switzerland...

Last weekend we had the opportunity to go on our first big hike of the season (How sad is that?? Due to such crappy weather this summer, we finally got to go hiking at the end of August... Grrrr!!)... We took advantage of the incredible weather and headed to Switzerland to take on Mt. Hoher Kasten. We hiked the same mountain last year, and we liked it so much that we couldn't wait to go back! :)

And, what a fantastic day of hiking it turned out to be! Blue skies, perfect temperatures, beautiful scenery, and a great group of people to hike with... What a perfect way to start (and pretty much end) the hiking season this year! :)

And we're off...

I love walking amongst the Swiss cows! :)

Scenic Switzerland...

Brian (and his camera) on the way up! :)

Katrina and Benjamin on the way up...

Do I look like a tourist or what, with the camera hanging around my neck?! :)

Benjamin made a friend! :)

Taking a break near the top...

And we made it! :)

What a view!! :)

Posing for the typical "Made it to the top" picture! :)

We brought a picnic lunch to eat at the top while enjoying the picturesque view... Meanwhile, the crazy birds had other ideas for us! :)

(Notice all of the birds around us in this picture??)

These birds were crazy!! They flew around us and swooped down near our heads... And, they even got close enough to attempt to snatch the sandwiches out of our hands... Made for an entertaining lunch! :)

What a small world! On our way to the top we ran into some fellow American friends of ours that live in the same town as us... Crazy! :)

We opted to take a more scenic route back to the car... So, we headed towards Staubern-Bruilisau...

Breathtaking! :)

Taking a break and making sure we were going the right direction...

The view was spectacular!! :)

I love this boulder!!

(You know me and my boulder fettish! I saw this and had to get a picture on it! :))

Such a cute little hut! I wouldn't mind living here... Look at that view! :)

And, as typical of our hiking experiences, we somehow managed to get off the trail... Which meant that we had to search out another route in an attempt to reconnect with the trail that led back to the car further on... Well, this was the "trail" we managed to find... Yep, that's right... Not actually a trail per say... More like a muddy mess that we attempted to walk uphill in... Good times! :)

We made our way up the muddy and slippery hill at the back of this picture, and came into this area... So, we sent the boys in opposite directions to search for the trail that led back to the car... And, in the meantime...

... Katrina and I passed the time by taking pictures of course! :) And, after some searching, they finally came across our trail so that we could go back home and not have to spend the night in the woods... Yay! :)

And, this was our view on the way back down...

What a great way to end the day! :)