1 8 Rambles with a Fishing-Rod. 



But one trait of the Tyrolese, which every 

 traveller will vouch for, is their unvarying 

 kindness to strangers ; it is a pleasure to wan- 

 der among so happy and good-hearted a people. 

 St Valentin stands 4000 feet above the sea- 

 level. To the east are the snow mountains 

 and wild valleys of the Oetzthal Alps, which 

 can be easily reached. The Langtauferen Thai 

 from Grauns leads right under the snow-capped 

 Weisse Kugel. Around the hamlet is the heath, 

 cultivated entirely in square chessboard-looking 

 patches of hay, grass, or corn ; then pine-trees, 

 and then the rocky peaks. In May and June, 

 which is the only time of the year when the 

 Fischmeister uses a fly, the fisherman will get 

 some trout. My sport shows that grayling may 

 be caught in September. The largest fish taken 

 in the lake with the net this year was said to 

 be 9 Ib. As to the number of anglers, you fish 

 for days and weeks, and are alone. Within 

 mortal memory this place appears to have been 

 visited only by two, a gentleman from Vienna 

 and an English captain ; so the fish are not like 

 their Welsh or Scotch brethren ever sought 

 after and terrified. Nor is it likely that this 

 state of things will change ; and should I re- 



