Click here for this week’s European Volksmarch schedule.
Mark your calendars! Here are some interesting walks that we think you will enjoy. Read the Volksmarch column for the appropriate week for details.
The walks below are convenient for some military communities and several are associated with special activities or exceptionally beautiful countryside. Plan now, so you don’t miss a walk near you.
• Sept. 30, Oct. 1, Boppard, Germany: This is a beautiful city on the Rhine River. Traditionally, this walk coincides with the town’s annual wine festival. Boppard has old Roman ruins, several riverside restaurants and on Saturday night will have fireworks. Food and wine booths abound and live music is everywhere.
• Sept. 30, Vianden, Luxembourg: Site of a magnificent castle and beautiful countryside.
• Oct. 6, 7, Kaiserslautern, Germany: Hosted by the Wanderfreunde Gut Fuß Dansenberg. Start at the School Center South.
• Oct. 7, Bitburg, Germany: The Wanderfreunde Weißmannsdorf sponsors this walk, which starts at the Bitburg airport.
• Oct. 13, 14, Grafenwöhr, Germany: The flier makes it sound as if the local club is going all out for this walk.
• Oct. 13, 14, Emmertsgrund: Just outside Heidelberg.
• Oct. 13, 14, Wiesbaden-Klarenthal: Close for Wiesbaden area Volksmarchers.
• Oct. 20, Enzweihingen, Germany: Convenient for Stuttgart folks.
• Oct. 21, Böblingen, Germany: Again, close by for Stuttgart walkers.
• Oct. 28, 29, Kindsbach: This town is on the B40 between Kaiserslautern and Landstuhl; convenient for the Kaiserslautern Military Community.
• Oct. 28, 29, Koblenz. Nice trails through beautiful fall-colored forests. This is the weekend you get your Daylight Saving Time hour back: make that hour count by spending it on a trail!
With the Christmas market season approaching, we love the combination of a Volksmarch followed by shopping at a Christmas market. So, if you know of a Volksmarch near a market, please drop us a line at two.walkers@yahoo.com.
———
One of our favorite walks takes place in Luxembourg this weekend. Saturday you can walk in Wiltz, where in the past the routes have wound around the hills overlooking the city and the castle. Wiltz was the former headquarters of the 28th Infantry Division and the site of desperate fighting during the Battle of the Bulge.
———
The Ford automotive plant in Saarlouis, Germany, hosts its 35th Volksmarch this weekend. The 6, 11, 20 and 30 kilometer trails start Saturday and Sunday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. In keeping with its traditional model car souvenirs, this year you can take home a Volvo XC 90 in 1:72 scale.
If you’re a Nordic walker, there are three 90-minute courses just for you. The start times are 10 a.m. Saturday and 9 and 11 a.m. on Sunday. Meet at the Filmsaal at the plant, next to the start/finish, to participate in these separate training courses. The start fee is 4 euros and, if you wish, you can get credit for 6K in your IVV books. All walkers can receive a free health test at the Ford Betriebskrankenkasse (BKK) both days. To reach the event, take the Saarlouis Steinrausch exit off Autobahn 8 if you’re coming from the Luxembourg or Saarbrücken direction. If you’re driving from Kaiserslautern or Karlsruhe, take the Nalbach exit. It begins at the Ford Werk, Kantine Halle B.
———
A great big "Thanks" to the contributors to this week's column. They are: William Castro and Maureen McHugh-Castro; Manfred Dahl; Theresia Fontaine; Bob Gambert; Lew Harrison; Egon Hatfield; Wayne Henry; Ramona and Horst Kechelen; James Kelly; David Kuik; Tim and Luchi Lynch; John and Patty Marsh; Pat Patterson; Dawn St. John and Nancy Shawley. Thanks also to the dozens of club members and volunteers who helped with the Heidelberg International Wandering Club's Volksmarch on September 8 & 9. We thoroughly enjoyed the walk and loved talking with friends and new acquaintances.
———
Notes about this week’s events:
• The walk in Neckarsteinach, Germany, has been canceled.
• For the folks in or around the Kaiserslautern Military Community, the Ramstein Roadrunner’s sister club, Wanderfreunde TV 03 Ramstein e.V., hosts a walk and bike event this weekend.
• Kützberg, Germany, hosts its third annual torch walk Saturday. Start the 5K between 7 and 8 p.m. A set of four coffee cups is the prize.
* Start cards at Wednesday's Konz-Oberemmel, Germany, walk cost 1.50 euros for children 14 years of age and under. However, they will receive a coupon worth 80 euro cents to use at the event. Konz is situated southwest of Trier.
• North of Amberg, Germany, is the suburb of Ammersricht, which will host 5-, 10- and 20-kilometer trails this Saturday and Sunday. All three courses have very short daily start windows: Saturday is 8 a.m. to noon (4 p.m. finish) and Sunday is 6:30 to 11 a.m. (3 p.m. finish). The souvenir is a stuffed bear with a hat and scarf. This is a close walk for the folks in the Grafenwöhr Military Community.
• The prize for completing the walk at San Giovanni Lupatoto, Italy, is 250 grams (about a half pound) of tortellini. (Last year these were filled with frog meat!)
• Sunday is the last day of the three-day fest in Verla di Giovo, Italy, where you will receive a food discount with your start card. Epect elevation variance on the trails. To reach the event, exit A22 at Trento from the south, or S. Michele from the north, and take SS12 to Lavis, then head east on S612 to Verla di Giovo.
• A walkers lunch will be served at the end of the walk in Valle San Floriano di Marostica, Italy. If you like serious upgrades, this is your walk.
E-mail Volksmarch schedule information to two.walkers@yahoo.com. Mail brochures to Bob and Lorraine Huffaker, CMR 460, Box 278, APO, AE, 09703-0278.
