The Fellhorn and the tranquil Riezler Alpsee

by Walter G. Allgöwer

Above the hiking trails, which wind their way through the greenery like bright lines, the Riezler Alpsee lies still, shimmering darkly – an artificial snow pond, created to herald the arrival of winter, even when the seasons are slow to change. Its waters rest like a deep eye in the landscape, fed by springs and rain, ready to fill the snow cannons of the Fellhorn and Kanzelwand cable cars, so that the slopes may gleam white in the cold light of the first frosty nights.
Behind the lake rises the Fellhorn, 2,038 metres high, a mountain that appears both gentle and proud. Its flanks are cloaked in the rich green of the Allgäu Alps, criss-crossed by paths on which hikers appear as tiny, moving dots. Wispy clouds drift over the ridges, and the light falls softly across the slopes, as if seeking to gently trace the mountain’s contours.
Up here, nature and human creation meet – the tranquil lake that sustains the winter, and the mountain that has watched over the valley for millennia. There is a special beauty in this union: a moment in which technology and landscape do not stand in opposition to one another, but together form a picture of tranquillity, strength and quiet anticipation.