Walking in the snow…

A week of walking in the snow in the German Alps by arctic temperatures between 20 and 28 degrees below!!! Since years we stay in the “Pension Hörnerblick” in Ofterschwang/Allgäu. A year ago th e youngest son Michael with his wife Dagmar took over and the young hosts do a very good job and all the guests feel very comfortable. Every day a walk of several hours in a winter wonderland – lunch in a comfortable hut  where tradional food is served. This proves walking or skiing makes fat…. On Thursday our host Michael has a special surprise for us: A ride with horse wagon. Lots of blankets and the schnaps afterwards helped to stand the cold.

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That’s it! September 17./18.

After the Saxonian comes the Frankonian Switzerland. During a heavy thunderstorm we spend the night in Goldkronau. For lunch we visit the Krug Brewery in Breitenlesau. During our first year in Erlangen this was a tiny brewery and its beergarden. They only served bratwurst. Nowadays the place is huge and today it is humming! It is not easy to get a table.

The family reunion with Nils and Melli at Niederndorf is quite nice. The following day we drive through the pre autumn coloured woods of the Odenwald.

campsite Goldkronau: N 50°00’45” E 11°40’57”

Brauerei Krug, Breitenlesau

Elbsandsteingebirge September 16.

We stay overnight at a campground in the Saxonian Switzerland. Nice base for hiking in this area.

The “Elbsandsteingebirge” has always been a dream destination to me. Despite many construction sites and detours we reach this wonderful place.

 

 

The stonecastle Neurathen is closed to the Bastei. It needs a lot of imagination to see the once inhabited castle on top of the stone formation. A little modell helps to view in ancient times.

 

We trundle along the border of the Czech Republik. It could be so nice – if there wouldn’t be so many detours. Eventually we are fed up and head direction Frankonia.

Campground Hinterhermsdorf: N 50°55’22” E 14°20’58”

Campsite Seiffen: N 50°39’16” E13°26’42”

Görlitz 15. September

Back in good old Germany! At last we are able to read the menus! But for this we have to cope with the unfriendly eastern German waitress! I really wanted to ask her if she likes her job…But nevertheless: Görlitz is a wonderful town! It is the most eastern town of Germany. The part of the city across the river Neisse has been cut off by the borderline created by WW2 and since then it is the Polish city of Zgorzelec. Görlitz sits exactly on the 15° longtitude east of Greenwich. That’s why the clocks here are more precise than elsewhere! After a strange lunch (look above) and a small stroll through the town we head for the “Sächsische Schweiz” (Saxonian Switzerland).

  

  

  

campsite/parking Görlitz: N 51°09’27” E 14°59’12”

Breslau/Wroclaw 14. September

Breslau is located in Lower Schlesien on the river Oder. For six centuries this country was ruled by Bohemians, Austrians and Prussians. That’s why this city has a unique mixture of architecture and culture. The reconstruction of the destroyed city was difficult and took till the eighties. The most important historical buildings were faithfully reconstructed. The most impressive place is of course the main market with its wonderful townhouses and the beautiful mayor house. The entrance to the famous restaurant “Ratskeller (Schweidnitzer Keller)” is under the middle tour of the mayor house. Here beer is served since 1303. Right next to it also located in a cellar is the brewery Spiz, the huge beergarden has always lots of visitors – today as well. But we get a seat and have a beer which was served with a “Schmalzbemme” (sorry, not translatable, you have to try…) For dinner we are lucky and find a small comfortable pub with excellent food.

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Campground Breslau: N 51^07’02” E 17°05’27”

along the river Weichsel September 13.

We drive diagonally through Poland along the river Weichsel. A tiny portside invites us to stay for the night. The smalll city with the little castle and the nearby church is very pretty.

       

    

Obviously we are far from any touristic route, no campers part from us to be seen !

Campsite: Port N0wi Duminow N52°35.034′ E19°28.689′

Masuren September 12.

In the morning we wake up by the noise of thunder. We have to move from our place in the meadow close to the shore before the rain starts. But where is the key for the electric box we are hooked on??? The search is a bit hectic but eventually we find it in the gras – it must have slipped out from the pocket of the trousers. Because of the weather we skip the planned canoe trip.

We keep going across the Masurische Seenplatte, the Lake district with the thousend lakes. These are connected through rivers and channels. They create a wide system of water ways.

Nikolaiken is a touristic center in the middle of the lake district. In July and August it is for sure quite a busy place, but now out of season it is a relaxing athmosphere here.

 

There is more behind the horizon but we are as far east as we wanted to go for now. We turn and travel to the west now. Always very fascinating are the trees along the roads.

campsite Szeroki Bor: N 53°36.934′ E 21°38.467′

campsite Nikolaiken: N 53°48.165 E 21°34.398′

 

Allenstein/Olsztyn 11. September

In the castle of Allenstein the famous Polish astronomer Nicholas Kopernikus lived as a governor from 1516 to 1521. In the tower he made his sky observations. Till this day one of his drawings is to be seen on the wall of the inner courtyard where he calculated the exact length of one year. Of course there is also a museum with models of the instruments he used.

   

 

This night we find a beautiful spot on the campground Tumiany in the Masuren Lake District.

Somehow everything here looks more clean than at the coast…

Camping Tumiany, Berczewo Gmina: N 53°48.891′ E 20°47.557′

The “Oberländische Kanal” 10.September

Good heavens, there are about 30 (!!!) German campers on tour through Poland at the campground we have chosen. And of course all of them take the boat for the boat trip on the Oberländische Kanal – just like us.

The channel is 82 km long. Nearly 100m of height difference have to be mastered over the whole length. This is controlled by a unique system of ship ramps. The boats are loaded on rails and pulled on ropes via rails to the next of five levels. The power is provided only by water.

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campsite Oberlandkanal: N 53°58.838′ E 19°37.155′

Elbing/Eblag 9.September

Like Gdansk Elbing was destroyed at the end of the 2nd world war up to the foundation walls. For decades nothing really happened in the town; the still usable building material was used to rebuilt Warsaw. In the 90s investors started to be interested in the reconstruction. With the help of historical documents the reconstruction of the historical buildings started. But a new experiment took place. . the old houses were not rebuilt 1:1 – only the plan and the character of the old construction had to be kept.  Up to now about 1/3 of the 500 destroyed town houses are reerected , year after year new ones come and the empty sites become smaller. It’s in this way  that a pretty modern “Old Town” with small high houses and coloured facades was created.

 

Campground Elbing: N54°09.226′ E 10°23.625′