COVID-19 pandemic spells quieter return from Alps for Bavarian cows

Travel restrictions meant the celebratory return of the herd was more muted than usual

Published: October 03, 2020 08:46 AP and Compiled by Nathaniel Lacsina, Senior Web Editor

1 of 10

Schoenau Am Koenigssee, Germany: Each fall the Resch family bring their cows down from Alpine pastures before the cold weather sets in, and each year the crowd of tourists coming to watch the traditional Bavarian spectacle grows bigger. Not this year. Image Credit: AP

2 of 10

Pandemic travel restrictions meant the celebratory return of the herd Friday was more muted than usual, as visitors from Asia and the Americas stayed away. Image Credit: AP

3 of 10

That didn't stop the Reschs from welcoming the 15 cows and herdswoman Petra, who had spent the summer in the mountains with the herd, with beer, schnapps and music. Image Credit: AP

4 of 10

After leading the cows down from the pastures to the Koenigssee lake near Berchtesgaden, the well-fed animals were draped with flowers and loaded onto a ferry to take them back home to the farm for winter. Image Credit: AP

5 of 10