Klettersteig Mürren ("by fair means" from Lauterbrunnen)

From Lauterbrunnen, we follow the hiking path that climbs the cliffs on the west side of the valley in the direction of Mürren. The path stays in the forrest (where we get to observe some chamois) and away from the cliffs, so the views are limited to the occasional glimpse of Eiger and Mönch through the trees. Those glimpses are well worth it, though.

In Mürren, we find the start of the via ferrata at the south-east edge of the tennis court. Somewhat strangely, the via ferrata is intended to be taken in descent (though there is no formal ban against going in the opposite direction). A likely reason is that the initial descent from Mürren is also used by base jumpers and wingsuit freaks to get to their launch platform, which is directly along the via ferrata. Unfortunately, we don't get to see anybody jump today.

The via ferrata is usually graded as K3. The difficulty is certainly more psychological than physical. More than 80% of the route is just K1, a literal "walk in the woods". However, the exposure is pretty extreme in one or two places, especially immediately after the base jump platform. Further on, the interesting bits consist of some ladders and two three-wire bridges. A final highlight comes at the end, just before Gimmelwald: a 80m long Nepali bridge (shaky at the ends but more stable in the middle). The village of Gimmelwald is unfortunately quite deserted at this time of year; you can't even get a beer anywhere...

We continue on foot via Stechelberg and through the valley (700m below the via ferrata that we were on before) back to Lauterbrunnen.

Of course, the hike can be shortened (or even basically "avoided") by using a combination of cable car, train and/or bus.

PS: the rock faces surrounding the Lauterbrunnental seem to have confused the GPS as little at the end...