On the morning of June 8, 2010, we left early from Graz to drive into the northern regions of the province of Styria. We had again lucked out with the weather - apart from a few white cotton-wool clouds, the sky was blue as far as the eye could see. After stopping at a supermarket to equip ourselves for a mountain picnic, we drove up the Loser Mountain, a mountain with an altitude of 1,838 in the Ausseerland lake region in Austria. The 9 km long toll road took us to a big parking spot in front of a restaurant where we plunked ourselves down for a fabulous picnic surrounded by a phenomenal mountain panorama. We had a perfect view of the Dachstein limestone mountain massif, at 2,995 metres one of the highest mountains of Austria, and the highest peak in the province of Styria. After hiking up further up the Loser Mountain past the remaining snow fields and enjoying the crisp high mountain air, we drove back into the valley into the town of Altaussee. This small settlement of less than 2000 people has long attracted writers, poets and artists due to its scenic and inspiring location. We hiked around the entire Altausseer See (Lake Altaussee) and enjoyed the fabulous mountain panorama surrounding this blessed place. Along the way we ran into a class of high school kids that were on a hiking excursion. They were having just as much fun as we were. In the late afternoon we drove back to my home town of Weiz, enjoyed a scrumptious dinner created by my brother, who is a gifted chef. In the evening we capped off our adventures with a nice ice cream in the picturesque village of St. Ruprecht.

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