Stubai Weekend

Published on 2021-8-6 by Michael Stanton

I bought a used mountainbike for 170 euros. The man selling it had done a great job restoring it. I think the frame is from the 1990s? Anyway, I did this because I have a few more vacation days, and I need to find an alternative to making a big hike and overdoing it with my foot, which almost always happens! Finally, at long last, I became a biker!

But no way I'm gonna spend much. I also don't like these motorcycles people use nowadays. Sure, they are quiet now, but they are burning coal. Germany is actually doing pretty well in getting electricity from renewable sources, about 45%. What bugs me here though is that a day in the mountains normally means only using human power. But now, you've got a battery pack which represents a good amount of energy (takes between 3 and 6 hours to charge).

Also, fights between hikers and bikers have gone on for decades. What will it be like now, as E-MTBs get more and more popular. Earlier, the biker and hiker came into conflict when the biker was speeding down and the hiker going up. Well, now, the biker also wants to race by the hiker going up, too!

And since you cover so much more ground on an ebike, you are going to do more wear and tear to the trail. You've probably multiplied your impact by 3 in that respect.

Oh well. If the topic interests you, here is a place to start.

Day One

For my first trip, I decided to bike up to the Starkenburger Hütte. I'd last been to this place in 2015 for a long hike, and before that for a really monster hike in 2006, which worried my family because I got back so late. Riki had Kris calling the police, what a debacle!

Starting from Fulpmes, I pedalled south to Neustift, and ran into my first serious technical problem. The seat kept loosening, finally ending up in a near-vertical position from which I couldn't sit down at all! The more I put it back in place, the more easily it would fall out of place again. I needed a wrench, and my "all purpose bike tool" didn't have one. Grr. I stopped at a gas station and asked the owner if I could use one of his tools. He came out and looked at the bike, then went back in to find a tool. On the floor was new mud and cow dung -- I was afraid I had tracked it in, so I picked it up and threw it in the trash. I said "oh sorry about tracking mud in," and he said "did you do that?!" I said I didn't know, but maybe. He said "show me your shoes!"

Thank the Lord my shoes were clean.

He grumbled something about farmers and went to the back.

I was able to tighten the nut, and just had to hope it would work until I got back to down afterwards. It was still way too early for a store to be open.

This is just how life is, you know? Despite the best laid plans, you have some "fiddly, tricky" thing to deal with. Where you have to finesse a solution, devise rules of engagement (try to sit on the front of the seat, stand on the pedals going over bumps, etc), and just hope and pray.

Anyway, I followed a road into Oberbergtal, then turned right at Bärenbad, then into a long tunnel which brought me to the long ridge coming down from the Hütte. The tunnel was interesting. I remember reading that the land of the dead is all caves and dark places of the earth. I guess that means they can be more easily communicated with there. I felt for any whispering presences, and saw myself walking the bike up the steep tunnel from a dark corner of the ceiling.

In general, it is not good for them to be there. Souls should move on to new and better things. It has the same sadness as that of a child who has to re-take a year of classes. Or people who are always in university. The ones still here have something holding them, and they must burn a lot of energy in staying attached because it's not natural to do so.

I figured that the best thing I could do for them was send them love. To say, "there are great plans for you. Forget the old story, and climb into your destiny! For you, the road to life leads through death, and so, finish the death good sirs and madams!"

Heh. Clearly, a lot of my reading comes from early in the last century. I really love their strong mode of speech. Today it sounds silly. But to me, what we read as silly, pretensious and egotistical, I read as courageous. To speak that way, you have to believe that your life matters in some larger scheme, though you don't fully understand it. In fact, you are showing gratitude for whatever helped you get here by stating your ideas boldly.

Nowadays, people are so familiar with the idea that all of this is some grand chemical accident, that they must apologize if they offer a strong opinion. "Because, after all, no one really knows," they think. This is a crime. Because if you were given a Mind, then you are meant to use it. Just because "the times" are doubtful about everything, doesn't mean you should be.

So the old speech comes from a time when faith was strong. I have an audiobook by Rudolf Steiner. He was german, but it seems that the english translation was made a long time ago. I love that cadence of speech. I think the title is "How to Know Higher Worlds." This is pure metal. Pure heavy metal!

Why shouldn't we want to know "higher worlds?" When we were kids we were ready for anything. We would have leapt into the spaceship from "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." In fact, that movie filled me with longing, it was almost frustrating to watch.

Anyway! Above the tunnel I pedaled slowly up, the bike in it's lowest gear the whole way. Sometimes I had to push it. I guess I rode about 65-70% of the time. The country opened up. At the Kaserstattalm, I headed back west to the ridge, now with the Hütte visible above. What a beautiful day. I got a picture of the bike here:

At the hut, a very nice couple from the Netherlands was sharing information about their hike (Rita and William). Rita does guiding on the Camino de Santiago in the summers. I asked her about the way, and how one might deepen the spiritual experience on such a hike. She said there are masses at night in different towns, suitable for hikers passing through to attend. I asked if the masses were in latin, but she said they are probably in spanish.

Without being a Catholic, I know what kind of Catholic I would be: Pre-Vatican II! I agree with Alan Watts, who said it was a mistake to change the mass to the language of the country it's held in. The mass is ceremonial magic. It is something real -- much more "real" than anything else that we'd call "the church."

The words should not be understood on the surface level. They should help you enter a meditative state -- to meditate on God, His Son, and Mary. You really don't want your ears to be caught by some one word or another, and send the brain skipping off on one of its many tangents. Much better to use the words as mere sound, only, and to feel the "word" of God behind them.

Alan Watts pointed out that Christian monks were told not to concentrate on the meaning of the words, but to use them in this way. This is analogous to mantra meditation in the Hindu/Yoga tradition, and because I know how effective that "way" is in going to depth, I wish it for Christian peoples too.

The Starkenburger Hütte

Looking across the valley.

Looking to Oberberg.

But, on the whole, I can't lament too much that western people prefer surface meanings. There is an idea that we are more materialistic because it was our particular mission to elaborate on and grow the complexity (and wonder) of the material plane. That is, our tendency to keep things physical, to eschew or avoid subjective states, is planted in us...in a kind of "race consciousness." And why look -- we've really done it! Think of how you are reading this -- it is only because of that imperative to bring the Kingdom of Heaven to Earth that we built such amazing technology. So while Hindus see time as a great circle of recurrance, western people see a line...a line of ever-upward progress.

The truth is more likely to be spiral. Yes, we come to the same place as before, but now on a higher arc. Much pain and angst in our society comes from the cognitive dissonance that the belief in a straight line brings us. Because we know that is simplistic and not quite right. It is nonetheless useful.

Sorry! Anyway, after a great conversation, Rita and William departed. I ordered a Weinschorle (wine mixed with carbonated water), read some more in my book (Robe of Light: an Esoteric Christian Cosmology). But it was time to head down.

Happily, I got to go down a different way, heading northeast to a point directly above Fulpmes. I had to stop now and then and shake out my hands which were on the verge of getting muscle cramps from the constant hard braking! Wheee!

Back at the car, I drove to a hardware store, got my wrench and added it to my little repair saddlebag. Then I headed to the campground in Neustift. I arranged my Berlingo for sleeping and relaxing, then took a nap. Dinner was some ramen noodles, bread, cheese and olive oil. Amazingly, Rita and William were right near me, and they invited me for a coffee after dinner. That was really wonderful.

Resting in Mantra.

Day Two

For today, I chose a tour that went up the forested Milderer Berg, then turned right just before reaching the Milderaunalm, and finally descended into the Oberberg Valley and up to the Oberisshütte. I cycled upvalley to Krößbach, then turned up onto a steep road. Boy, this climbing on a bike is tough! Still, I managed to mostly ride. Later, I screamed down in the valley. Right at the end of the road I was suddenly in an impromptu conversation with an older woman on an ebike. She told me about the trail she had done yesterday on the other side of the valley. For some reason on this weekend, I ran into many talkative people, eager to tell me what they were doing. It's really nice. Somehow I feel surrounded by friends nowadays.

I rode up the valley for 30 minutes or so, then the road was closed due to rockfall. This irritated me. Later, I felt ashamed for that, because I learned later that the day before a man had an accident in his car, drove off the road and was killed. I was focused on getting my full 1000 meters of climbing in, and this "spoiled" my plan. Still, as I watched myself I saw how dumb it was to get mad. Soon I was speeding down the road, and back to the campground. I decided to take off immediately for a second bike ride. This time, up to the Issenangeralm in the Pinnistal. I biked down to Neder, then started steeply up. I must say, this road was so steep that I only rode the bike 15% of the time max. Boah! By the time I got to the 'alm, I was really tired. Countless ebikes with smiling grandmothers roared by me, both up and down.

Whew! I'd gotten in about 1200 meters of climbing for the day, so I was happy to stop at the alm and eat Kaiserschmarrn and drink an alcohol-free Weißbier. Lately, I've disliked the effect alcohol has on me. I always "think" it'll be nice to have a beer or wine, but afterwards I feel extra tired and my head is somehow "crowded." It's as if the room-of-thought in which I work got a lot smaller.

In the Issenangeralm, eating lunch.

An interesting structure in the river below the Issenangeralm.

In the last month I became a vegetarian, I reduced coffee to once every 5 days, and well, now it looks like I'm going to greatly reduce alcohol. Still, a Weinschorle at the Therma Erding with Barbara must remain on the table! That is always so much fun.

For me vegetarian means no meat, no fish, no eggs. But cheese and milk and yogurt are on the menu. I'm not going to kill anymore in order to eat. It simply isn't necessary.

I was also reading a very interesting book, the Rosicrucian Cosmo Conception, by Max Heindel.

This book talks about stages of life and creation cycles. It makes a distinction between mineral, plant, animal and human life. Each of these are separated by a "creation day." Those that are animals today, will be human in the next cycle (chiefly). That consciousness which is bound up in mineral life today will be plant life later. Each form of life is busy building it's "next" body by acquiring many experiences that stoke the desire for it. We humans are building the Light Body. To do it, we have to reach into a realm where we can't see, we can only "feel," following hunches, and listening into our silent spaces.

I had a viscearl experience watching some slugs about a week ago. The boys and I were in Europa Park for the weekend. I'd gone with them and rode all the crazy roller coasters on the first day, but the second day, I parked Mantra on a hill in the Schwarzwald and hung out, walking, reading and meditating. I saw how a slug walked across the trail. It can only sense where to go. It's sensory organs are few, and seem so primitive. They have the absolute minimum neccessary to operate as an "animal."

Well, it makes sense that the consciousnesses experiencing that kind of life eventually move into something higher. I think that our task of building the Light Body is much like the slugs task of building an ideal body for the earth plane. His movement is similar to the way I attempt to cultivate a feeling, to approach it, to watch it bloom inside and see where it takes me. I felt such sympathy for him, because I know how hard this is, yet how needful the work is.

I made my friend Vaclav laugh a few weeks ago because I was walking barefoot on a gravel road, having such a hard time with the sharp stones. I told him that after a kilometer of this I was completely exhausted, then I saw a slug with a bunch of rocks stuck to his "foot carpet." Not only did I feel sorry for him, I also felt like he was a real hero. If he, with his almost permeable skin can brave this enormous boulderfield, then how small am I in comparison? Anyway, it was funny for us to see that I admired a slug so much!

After a rather nerve-wracking steep descent, I was back at Mantra for a nap. I decided to go out to dinner. Jong and I had a tentative plan to meet for dinner near the Brenner Pass, as he was biking over the alps from home to begin his Dolomiti vacation. But we were both tired and canceled it. I had a great pizza and another alcohol-free beer (I gotta watch out for these -- they are probably quite fattening!). I read and had a great view of the mountainside.

A pizza dinner in town Saturday night.

Day Three

During breakfast William and Rita came by and we exchanged stories of our previous day. They'd be here another 5 days or so before driving home. I decided to hike today, because my butt hurt too much to sit on a bike seat anymore. It rained hard all night, and clouds filled the valley. I drove away wondering where to go. But then the choice was easily made for me. I saw a break in the clouds and sun on the slopes of the Nordkette above Innsbruck. That's where I'll hike!

I drove up to the Hungerbergbahn parking lot, then walked steeply up under the lift. I deviated to the right to get on the spur ridge under the Bodensteinhütte. There I drank a delicious Heißeshokolade. The older lady who worked there gave me a beautiful smile many times. I saw a radiant light in her. This is the Light Body. It comes through into this world through face, eyes, skin. It is evidence of a flower growing in a secret place, petals turned towards God.

Looking up the Hafelekar.

Self-portrait on the Hafelekarspitze.

The Mind blocks the Will's access to Spirit. Ignore the barriers! Push through!

Higher, I missed the left turn to go steeply up to the lift station on the crest, and continued to the east to a pass. From here I traveled the ridge west to the Hafelekarspitze (2334 m). In a gray cloud, unfortunately, but at least it wasn't raining. Here I took the steeper way down through avalanche fences, then to the lift station. Time for a lunch of tomato cream soup and...you guessed it! Alcohol-free Weißbier.

1500 meters up and 500 down.