We are currently in Salzburg so to make good use of the unseasonably warm weather - 23C today - we decided to go to two locations that are better when the weather is good. Yesterday we enjoyed the Salzburger Freilicht Museum and today we drove the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse.
The Salzburger Freilicht Museum is a 50 hectare open air museum that features a collection of homes and farm buildings from the various parts of the Salzburger region. They have all been reassembled at the museum site to show what farms and life was like over the last six centuries. We really enjoyed wandering around the different paths and seeing the reconstruction, and found it quite interesting. There weren't any demonstrations when we were there, but we understand that in the summer months this happens regularly. The museum is located close to Grossgmain which is very close to Salzburg. This museum is not as extensive as the Open Air Museum in Ballenberg, Switzerland, but it is still very interesting.
Today the weather was still glorious, so we made our way to the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse (High Alpine Road). This road is located in the Hohne Tauern National Park. This was the most OUTSTANDING, AMAZING, BEAUTIFUL, STUNNING road we have ever been on. We live close to the Rockies in BC, so for us to say this gives you an idea of how fabulous this is. It helped that the weather was with us. This is a toll road - 27E for a car, very steep and windy, with lots of pull-outs to enjoy the views. There are a number of information points along the way that tell you about the ecology, geology, road building, etc. We stopped at most of them - the map you get lets you know where they are. Also, go up to the Edelweiss-Spitze - you won't believe the road, and it's an amazing panorama !! Watch out for the bicycles - they are everywhere - we think it must be something that is on peoples bucket list - I rode my bike up the Hochalpenstrasse and lived to tell it - amazing... ! The other amazing thing about this road was that it was built from 1930 to 35, without the large equipment that might be used in more modern times. We then continued up the road to the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Hohne. This is the longest glacier in the Eastern Alps. This location is quite a scene - literally. Here you are in this high alpine area - glaciers, mountain peaks, etc, and the viewing location is a collection of multistory parking lot, restaurants, interpretation center, and people - lots of people. It's worth a stop, though - the scenery is worth it. If you can - put this adventure on your list!! We left our gasthaus at 9 am and returned by 4:30 pm. We weren't rushed - had plenty of time to stop at most of the view points, take tons of pictures, have a picnic lunch, and make our way back to Salzburg. We had a FABULOUS day!