Kent’s favorite movie is The Eiger Sanction, a cheesy 1975 Clint Eastwood movie with fantastic climbing scenes from the Eiger, a notoriously dangerous mountain here. Kent, Ray and I have all watched The Eiger Sanction far too many times, and Kent and I had been quoting lines from the movie to each other non-stop for 2 months in anticipation of seeing the Eiger and taking the train to Jungfraujoch. Kent had been to this area a few times, but had never been to Jungfraujoch. At the turn of the century they built a train tunnel through the Eiger to take tourists to Jungfraujoch - the Top of Europe. 

Tuesday morning was clear and warm with no wind. I met Kent around 8am. The train to Jungfraujoch costs around $100 round trip including the 25% Eurail discount.   We boarded the 8:15 train in Murren.  We took the funicular down to Lauterbrunnen, then took a train to Kleine Sheidegg.  That train was packed full of tourists also headed up to Jungfraujoch - a huge percentage of them were Japanese.  I was floored to see so many people coming into Lauterbrunnen Valley on day trips.  Rita told me all the other guide books tell you to stay overnight in Interlaken.  That would be missing the best part of the Alps!  At Kleine Scheidegg we changed trains again to a cogwheel train.  Kleine Scheidegg, near the base of the Eiger, which was featured prominently in the movie. 

Mürren, across the valley at the top of the cliff from the train to Jungfraujoch
The Schilthorn is to the right above Mürren

The train is only outside for a few minutes before it enters the miles long tunnel in the heart of the Eiger.  In a few minutes we stop at the first station inside the Eiger, Eigerwand, which features huge panoramic windows looking out of the mountain down on Kleine Sheidegg.

Kleine Scheidegg from the North Face of the Eiger

There’s also a service tunnel allowing access to the face of the Eiger itself, which is featured prominently in The Eiger Sanction and mentioned in numerous climbing books – climbers who decide to retreat from an Eiger climb can simple open the door, walk into the train station, and take the train down. 

The second stop inside the tunnel, Eismeer, lets you looks out on Fieschergletscher, the Fiescher Glacier.  

Click here for a 600k panorama of Fieschergletscher.  At the time the stop seemed like one too many, but in retrospect the view was fantastic.

By around 11:00am we were at Jungfraujoch. The weather held – at the top it was around freezing, but there was no wind, no clouds, and all sun – you simply couldn’t ask for better weather at 11,000’. To me the most impressive sight was the Jungfraufirn and the massive 11 mile long Aletsch Glacier heading off to the south. We took dozens of pictures from the Sphinx, the building with the prominent viewpoint.

Click here for a 1.2 meg 360 degree panorama from the top of the Sphinx, at the Top of Europe.

Kent & I in front of Grosser Aletschgletscher

Kent & I in front of the Mönch

Kent's family

The Sphinx and the JungfrauJoch

Kent and I in front of the Jungfrau

We saw the Ice Palace and all the other attractions, had a light lunch (with beer, of source), and headed back to Kleine Scheidegg. Kent and I were unable to locate the deck featured in the Eiger Sanction, where Ben (George Kennedy) watches the team climb the Eiger through a telescope. I wandered up the hillside to the bluff where Clint Eastwood stands in the closing scene as a helicopter mounted camera zooms out and pans away.  I figured I was going to hold up the show by taking more pictures, but I found Kent's family up on the bluff.  

Click here for a 2.5 meg 360 degree panorama of the Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau from Kleine Scheidegg.

Kent's dad noticed the bright red flowers, and I managed to get 'the shot' of the Eiger

By now it was 2pm – we had another snack, took dozens more pictures, and hiked down to Wengen. Rita is a biologist who specializes in Alpine fauna, so she was in heaven, not that the rest of us were having a bad time. 

The Eiger and the Mönch

From Wengen we boarded the train down to Lauterbrunnen before heading back up to Murren. It was another long day on the trains, but it was a fantastic journey. The rest of the family had spent the day relaxing – the kids spent over 4 hours in the pool.