The hot walk this weekend is in Stuttgart, Germany. Here is the scoop, provided by Wayne Henry from the Stuttgart German-American Wandering Club:

The club will host its 36th Annual International Volksmarch July 30 and 31 at the Heumaden Sports Club on Kemnater Straße 50 at Heumaden-Sillenbuch in southeast Stuttgart.

This event continues our recent tradition of hosting the walk at Heumaden and will feature new trails. The routes are six, 13 and 22 kilometers; the 6-km route is stroller friendly. A Young Walkers category is offered for the six- and 13km trails, so bring the kids. The march begins at 11 a.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. Sunday.

Walkers will enjoy the beauty of the woods surrounding Stuttgart, with trails providing views of valleys and vineyards stretching to the Neckar River. The early parts of the trail go past family flower gardens in Sillenbuch and then through the Nature Preserve of the Eichenhain. This beautiful area has oak trees believed to be up to 400 years old and is home to many unique plant and animal species.

The longer trails will offer many panoramic views from the hills above Stuttgart (and there are a lot of those). Walkers on the longer routes will see views of the Neckar River, the Mercedes Museum and Gottlieb-Daimler Stadium with Burgholzhof (Robinson Barracks) visible to the west.

One control point overlooks the Neckar and Rohracker Valleys with a sweeping view up to Esslingen. The 22-km trail then follows old vineyard steps and wanders through the Dürrbach Valley to rejoin the 13-km trail uphill at Frauenkopf. Then the combined 13- and 22-km trail goes down a steep hill (including steps) and past an interesting troll garden, home to about 1,500 trolls and other figures, including miniature castles and other fairy-tale buildings.

Another control point is at the old Rohracker Kelter. The wine for the walk and group prizes comes from the Wein Genossenschaft here. This stop is followed by a climb back up through the forest to Heumaden.

At several spots along the trail, walkers can see the famous Stuttgart landmark, the TV tower, towering majestically above the landscape.

Don’t miss this walk! For more details, visit www.sgawc.org.

Thanks, Wayne, for the information. The SGAWC is proud to be the oldest German-American volksmarch club in existence. We wish them a very successful weekend of walking. Don’t forget to bring some baked goods to donate to the club.At this time, Bob plans to drive down for the walk. Look for him at the start hall or on the trail Saturday, especially around the troll garden!Other interesting German walks this weekend are in Bamberg, Frankfurt and Alt-Hürth. The Alt-Hürth walk is especially interesting because it offers seven routes ranging from six to 70 kilometers. If this is not enough variety, there are seven more permanent trails in the vicinity.Next Wednesday is one of those “three-walks-in-one-day” opportunities. The three start-time windows are staggered throughout the day. Check the walks chart for these times in Waldalgesheim, Waldlaubersheim and Daxweiler, Germany. We did this event last year and had a good day of walking.

Thanks a million to the contributors to this week’s article. They are: William Castro and Maureen McHugh-Castro, Michael and Michelle Connor, Cath and Rob Floyd, Bob Gambert, Richard and Donna Glenn, John and Evelyn Golembe, Wayne Henry, Tim and Luchi Lynch, “Pat” and Cheryl Patterson, Richie and Young Sook Reeder, Rick and Wanda Sciascia and Nancy Shawley.

E-mail volksmarch information to two.walkers@yahoo.com. Mail brochures to Bob and Lorraine Huffaker, CMR 460, Box 278, APO, AE, 09752.

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