Saturday’s walk in Neckarsteinach, Germany, should be convenient for readers in the Heidelberg area. After the walk, head toward the Heidelberg castle for the evening castle illumination. This is the last time this year that the castle will be lit up.
Sunday you can do the walk in Rauenberg. Sounds like a lively weekend in Heidelberg.
On the other hand, if you are near the Kaiserslautern military community, the walk this weekend in Höheinöd should be convenient. The routes start at 7 a.m. both days at the Sportplatz Sägmühle. You can start the five- and 10-kilometer trails until 2 p.m., but you have to start the 20k route before 1 p.m. All trails close at 5 p.m.
To get there, if driving on Autobahn 62 from the Kaiserslautern/Landstuhl direction and heading toward Pirmasens, take the Höheinöd exit, which is located within a rest area. Go about 100 meters, slow down and take a sharp right-left jog. At the sign, turn right toward the traffic circle and follow the signs to the start. If you’re coming from the Pirmasens direction, heading toward Kaiserslautern/Landstuhl, exit at the rest area on the opposite side and take an immediate right turn after only 20 meters. Turn right under the bridge and proceed to the traffic circle.
The walk in Dettelbach am Main, Germany, is awarding a cute little teddy bear for completing one of its routes. The flier shows a boat ride across the Main River, but we’re not sure if that is on all the routes. You can start walking at 11 a.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. Sunday; trails are five, 11 and 20 kilometers.
If you need a garden troll for your landscaping, then Sunday’s walk in Gumpersdorf is the one for you. The routes are five and 10 kilometers and you can start walking between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m.
For walkers in the Tri-border area, there are two walks Sunday in the Netherlands that caught our eyes. First is in the town of Nunhem, which is not too far from “the white village” of Thorn. After the walk, visit this nice village and see the old church. A stop at the pancake restaurant across from the church is a must.
You can also walk in Heerlen Sunday. This is a nice walk in spite of the fact that it is not an IVV-sanctioned walk. In the past, the trail has crossed over into Germany and has been in a nature park. Look closely and you might see overgrown dragon’s teeth from the Siegfried Line.
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Volksmarcher Phyllis Wiggins was the trip captain when the Heidelberg International Wandering Club (HIWC) took a recent bus trip to the walk in Bamberg, Germany. She sent us the following after-action report. We’re sorry we didn’t go, because it sounds like they had a blast!
“Forty-two members of the HIWC attended a weekend trip to Franconia. Our first stop Saturday was the Bamberg DAWC volksmarch. The trail was a nice route through the woods and thankfully the weather was in our favor. The DAWC was generous and provided each of us with a souvenir beer krug.
“We stayed in Bamberg overnight and had a wonderful time seeing the town and enjoying the jazz and blues fest that was going on.
“On Sunday we proceeded to Oberthulba, near Bad Kissingen, and walked the IVV permanent trail. There are eight- and 17-kilometer options, and as we had one more stop to make, we took the 8k trail, which travels through fields and villages in that area. It is a nice trail and we found some places of interest along the way, to include a cask maker who makes custom items for decoration.
“Our last stop was a lunch break at Kloster Kreuzberg, where we enjoyed a nice meal as well as the world-famous beer.”
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Even though we got pretty wet, we enjoyed the walk in Bellevaux, Belgium. Located near Malmedy, the walk was very hilly but held a couple of surprises for us. The first was when the trail took us past a small brewery, the Brasserie de Bellevaux. It is open to the public on weekends, with a tour at 4 p.m. The second surprise was at the end of the walk when we passed a small bakery that was open Sunday morning. Since it was late in the morning the selection was limited, but the cherry streusel pie and chocolate croissants were very good. The goodies from this little bakery made us forget about the rain and mud we just walked through. We are looking forward to another trip to Bellevaux to visit the brewery.
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A “high-five” and a “way-to-go!” to Maureen McHugh-Castro for reaching the 2,000 kilometer milestone at the Tiefenbach volksmarch. She turned in her book and received her certificate, pin and patch. May the next 2,000 all be downhill!
A great big “thank you” to this week’s contributors: William Castro and Maureen McHugh-Castro, Cath and Rob Floyd, Richard and Donna Glenn, John and Evelyn Golembe, Tim and Luchi Lynch, “Pat” and Cheryl Patterson, Lew Harrison, Wayne Henry, Nora Hernandez and Nancy Shawley.
Last, but not least, our Italian volksmarching update from Clark Soeldner:
• “The Selva di Val Gardena walk is always a great mountain walk. Expect some serious hills on the 21-kilometer route.”
• “The start for the Vigasio walk is two kilometers from the center of Vigasio in the direction of Verona.”
E-mail volksmarch information to two.walkers@yahoo.com. Mail brochures to Bob and Lorraine Huffaker, CMR 460, Box 278, APO, AE, 09752.
