In January, following our tradition of exploring the hills, we set off for our first hiking outing in Lower Franconia, the region of Bavaria in which Würzburg is situated. A quick search on Komoot showed us that there are a lot of interesting hikes within about a 60-90 minutes radius of Würzburg. For our first trip, Kreuzberg got the nod because 1) it has a monastery with a brewery (Husband’s Choice) 2) it has the same name as a Berlin suburb and we were curious to see “the other Kreuzberg” and 3) it is the highest of the Rhön mountains (928m) in the Bavaria, and is known as “The Sacred Mountain of the Franconians”. Continue reading
Bavaria
A winter afternoon in Bamberg
All German towns are more beautiful in summer (unless covered by a layer of snow), but winter is long, so we though we might as well start doing some sightseeing in our new state despite the grey weather. Bamberg has a reputation for being a particularly picturesque town, so we headed there on a Saturday afternoon. Continue reading
Chiemsee: visiting Herreninsel and Fraueninsel
Recently we were in Bavaria for four days, and spent three of the days hiking (you can read about that here). I felt a bit sad on the last day that we did not go for another hike, but our friend was keen to visit the lake Chiemsee, and indeed, it was probably more relaxing than rushing up the mountain, considering we’d have to catch a train around 5:30! So we packed all our things and hurried off to catch a train to Prien. There are lockers at the train station at Prien where you can leave your luggage. We did this and then walked down to the lake, where you can catch a boat to the islands in the lake as well as several cities around the lake. Our aim was to visit Herreninsel and Fraueninsel. Continue reading
3 more hikes in and around the Chiemgau region, Bavaria
The region of Chiemgau in Bavaria is in the foothills of the Alps, and its hilly landscape was formed during the ice age. Last year we travelled there for hiking and walked in the mountains on both sides of the German and Austrian border, heading up to Kampfenwand, Wilde Kaiser, Wandberg and the Blumen Weg next to Wildseelodersee. This year we returned and visited Lochner Horn, Brennkopf, Klausenberg, Sonnwendwand, as well as the beautiful lake Chiemsee. We still didn’t manage to get to do two of the iconic hikes in the area, up to the Geigelstein and Spitzstein, but it’s always good to leave something for another day.
Germany
Our posts on Germany are organized according to the German states, in alphabetical order.
Baden-Württemberg
Bavaria (Bayern)
Chiemsee: Herreninsel and Fraueninsel
Hiking in the Chiemgau area, Bavaria
Franconian Kreuzberg and the ruins of Osterburg
Berlin
Natur-Park Schöneberger Südgelände
Festival of Lights, Berlin 2015
Brandenburg
Battle of the Seelow heights and a walk near the Oder river
Baumblütenfest, Werder an der Havel
Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony)
Cross-country skiing in the Harz mountains
More cross country skiing adventures in the Harz mountains
North-Rhine Westphalia
Thüringen (Thuringia)
Saxony (Sachsen)
Sächsische Schweiz/Saxon Switzerland
The Spree cycle route (Spreeradweg)
An Introduction to Ski-touring in the Bavarian Alps (Spitzensee)
The establishment of a fast train connection from Berlin to Munich means that the Alps are now that much closer, and long weekend trips are easier than before. We have a friend with whom we often go on outdoor adventures, including those of the snowy variety, and she is a big fan of ski-touring, so last weekend the three of us headed down to Bavaria so that she could show us why she loves this sport. Ski-touring involves climbing up slopes with special skis that have “skins” on for grip, then removing the skins so that you can ski down off-piste on lovely, fluffy powder snow. The skins are usually made of nylon (cheaper), mohair (more expensive), or a combination of the two. Continue reading
Hiking in the Bavarian and Austrian Alps
As winter approaches, we think of the Alps because of snow and skiing, but in summer it’s another world all together. A world of meadows, flowers and cows with bells, like a scene out of Heidi or The Sound of Music. One of my biggest wishes when moving to Europe was to go hiking in the Alps, and in my fifth summer here we finally made it there in summer. (Fifth summer! I had to count this on my fingers a few times. Has the time really disappeared so quickly?).
We went with a friend to Bavaria in the late days of spring heading towards summer, for four days of hiking in the Alps. The weather was great, four days of sun. We stayed in a little town called Aschau, near the Austrian border. There are hikes leaving directly from the town and many more accessible nearby, especially if you cross the border into Austria. Continue reading