Our first stop was the Hallstaedtersee. It was so beautiful, as was the weather, and the water could really not have been cleaner or clearer. A brilliant start to the shortish tour Dennis had prepared for us. I had no idea exactly where we were heading, but it was all really special and extremely varied.
We arrived at Bad Ischl, an attractive small town on the banks of the gently flowing River Traun.
The town is extremely clean and tidy and we were lucky enough to arrive on the evening of a wine festival. It was a super atmosphere with music and of course lots of local wine. Believe it or not , I only had one glass ( actually I am not so keen on the Austrian wines) and we were heading to the thermal pools afterwards. The pools were okay but the jets a bit too hard for me! I need to toughen up a bit I think.
Our accommodation was amazing, in an old villa just outside town. We had an appartment there with a balcony, on the first floor . It was very special. We sat outside after our swim enjoying the peace, the wonderfully clear skies and pleasant temperatures.
Our trip to Sankt Poelten was fantastically varied, with breathtaking scenery almost the entire way, much of the journey being in the Gesauesel national park. From agricultural areas with huge farms reminiscent of New Zealand,
To Staggeringly impressive, sheer rock faces rising up dramatically from the narrow valley floors to tower above us.
The altitude was strangely deceptive. We often had the feeling we were climbing significantly, only to find we were only a few hundred metres above sea level, yet often with dramatic views
Here we are at the top of one pass, with our extremely comfortable and plush Audi. A little more style than my little Mazda in New Zealand!
The roads reminded me of New Zealand in many ways- virtually empty and often in need of repair, but actually perfectly okay to get us from A to B!
We stopped for a drink at a fabulous place, the Enntal golf course
As we turned off the main road and followed a narrow winding road for several kilometres to the golf club, we wondered what we would find. It was great!.
What a wonderfully restful, calm place this was to take a break. The course looked incredible , with its stunning scenery - actually in the heart of a World Heritage nature park.
More dramatic scenery and empty roads!
Finally, after quite a climb and an extremely curvy road we reached the highest point of the day, only a few metres short of 1000m above sea level. What a gorgeous view in such perfect weather.
It appears that we were unbelievably lucky because apparently it had been extremely cold and rainy in the last weeks.
Our day finished in St Poelten, a smallish town which compared to the other places we had visited, seemed in need of a little TLC. It had a large open square surrounded by cafes but apart from this there was not much to see on a Sunday evening. It didn't matter at all. The day had been so full of amazing places and we had a brilliant evening at a pizzeria, sharing stories and often laughing uncontrollably. So lovely to enjoy these balmy spring evenings with Dennis in new places.
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