Sleeping in Straw

Day 10: Via Jacobi September 2, 2026 Ingenbohl (SZ) – Oberdorf (NW)

Yesterday, I went to bed early because I wanted to get up at dawn. Besides, breakfast was only served from 7 to 8 a.m. I was informed, “We'd like to clear the tables by 8!” Staying at the convent in Ingenbohl is stricter for female guests than for the men in Einsiedeln. And overall, I didn’t feel right here, even though the women were friendly. Maybe it was simply because I had slept poorly. The pilgrim accommodation also hosts holiday guests, and two of them shouted their conversation through the walls late into the night, allowing me to hear every word. Not very “monastery-like!” When I finally fell asleep, at around midnight, a woman burst into the dorm, casually turned on the lights, and began unpacking her things and making her bed. She asked me when we needed to be outside in the morning and how late breakfast was served, as she didn't think she would get up early. I mumbled back, “No idea!” I couldn’t collect myself from my deep sleep. “It doesn’t matter anyway, because blah blah blah…” I got so worked up about her audacity that I hardly slept at all that night. So, I got up at 6 a.m. and was at breakfast at 7 a.m. sharp, where I met Gerhard from Augsburg. He was traveling with a tent and had used it several times, possibly planning to cover the trip in one go, although he mentioned that France was a huge country, he told me at the breakfast table. He often does crazy things. A cool guy, very sharp! The bread basket still had some pieces of bread, and I asked him if we should make “sandwiches” with it. He pointed to a sign that said leftovers couldn’t be taken away. Oh dear, I really didn’t want to be remembered as a thief in the convent and regretted the bread that might be thrown away since we were the only pilgrims in the house today.

We both wanted to catch the first ferry in Brunnen. For centuries, pilgrims have used the historical ferry connection across Lake Lucerne to get to Treib. The walk to Brunnen took about 20 minutes at a brisk pace. I remember Gerhard's words: “Morning is the best time when the day awakens.” And somehow he was right. On the ferry, I saw him again and wondered why he wasn’t coming up to the top deck with me. Like the Queen, I sat all alone up there in the wind enjoying the magnificent panorama and relaxing. When we arrived in Treib, Gerhard said, “You sat in first class!” Oh dear, I accidentally benefited from a mistake again! But turning around and paying extra seemed too much trouble. In my memory, Gerhard will always be the one making sure I don’t end up in jail 😉!

Upon disembarking, I met another pilgrim. Cornelia, whom Gerhard already knew, had met her somewhere at Lake Constance on her first day of pilgrimage when a fallen tree trunk blocked her path. In our imagination, Gerhard lifted the tree trunk single-handedly so that Princess Cornelia could continue on her way like a fairy. We all had a good laugh. We quickly realized that each of us has a different speed while hiking. While hiking up the mountain, I kept pace with Gerhard for a while. But eventually, our paths parted. This guy can easily cover 40 km in a day. I definitely can’t! I probably won’t see the rocket again. During a break, Cornelia caught up with me and we hiked together for a long time along this breathtaking route through the cliffs and up on the ridge. Eventually, she also moved on. Before it steeply descended again, I passed Emmetten and remembered the happy days of my childhood, where I had spent various summer camps. However, it lost some of its magic upon passage; it was far less spectacular than in my memory. At some point, I wondered why I hadn’t caught up with Cornelia until I realized that I had gotten seriously lost. I had missed a turn on a comfortable, slightly downhill stretch, and I had gotten into a flow. So, I had to take a long, tedious detour. After the extensive detour, I sat down somewhat tired in a lakeside bistro and had a toast for lunch. I also discovered non-alcoholic beer for myself. I convinced myself that the electrolytes would give me a new boost for my continued journey. During this break, I tried to find an overnight accommodation for myself, which turned out to be difficult. After the ninth phone call, it finally worked out and I found a farm where I could spend the night in the straw. I was relieved but also confused. After all, we are in Switzerland and not on the last 100 km to Santiago de Compostela. I believe that many accommodations here are not exclusively reserved for pilgrims, but also for school classes or hiking tourists.

Towards Buochs, the path dragged mercilessly along the main road under the scorching afternoon sun. I briefly sat in the shade on a staircase in front of a house to change into sandals. An over-90-year-old lady stepped out of the house, and we started chatting. Over 60 years ago, she completed the Camino de Santiago in Spain. Back then, the entire parish community participated; it was an experience she would never forget. I was impressed and imagined her traveling without quick-drying functional clothing and in a long skirt, with a cumbersome backpack and heavy hiking boots in all kinds of weather. It was exciting to hear her lively stories as if it had been yesterday!

In Buochs, I didn't know where to put my heat, so I bought a cold drink and briefly sat down in a somewhat cool staircase next to the shop to check my route. I set my backpack down, completely sweaty and red-faced, and maybe sat there for half a minute when a younger woman came in and told me to leave, or else there would be complaints. But there was no one around! I asked why, and she replied with, “Please just leave now!” I said I would be gone in two minutes, that I was a hiker, and just wanted to check my route quickly. How disgusting can one be to not let a person rest briefly where hardly a soul passes by? It only dawned on me later that she thought I was homeless! Looking unkempt after the long hike, sweaty and disheveled, with my home on my back, I probably resembled someone who didn’t know where to spend the night. Sometimes, the coldness of people makes me sad. Luckily, there are also many others. The path to Oberdorf was difficult again, but when I arrived at the farm, one of the farm girls greeted me and immediately handed me a popsicle. I had reached paradise. My straw bed was directly above the cow barn. One cow was in a party mood that evening and simply didn’t want to go to sleep. Eventually, she also managed to settle down, and I finally fell into a comatose sleep… until the rooster started crowing around 5 a.m.! “A little bird in the throat!”, a good friend of mine would suggest, and I laughed desperately in my straw bed. A wonderful new day is beginning!

Insight of the day:

Amazing what you can squeeze out of your body when necessary!

Sometimes I look like a “homeless person”

Distance covered: 31 km, 40,146 steps, 582 m up, 563 m down.