There has been a lot of good news in our mailbox in the past week and we want to share it with you.

First, the Heidelberg International Wandering Club walk was having problems getting a start hall for its annual walk in September. We are glad to announce that it has been able to secure its usual start hall, the Internationale Gesamtschule Hasenleiser, which is behind the U.S. hospital in Heidelberg.

The dates for the walk are Sept. 25 and 26. Mark your calendars now, because this is a walk you do not want to miss. It is far enough in advance that you can plan to volunteer at the walk, too. You can fill out a volunteer form at the Heidelberg club’s Web page, www.hiwc.de.

Second, the Kaiserslautern Sunny Coyotes Volksmarching Club is sponsoring a bus trip to the walk in Vianden, Luxembourg, Saturday, June 19. The bus will leave the Imfeld bus depot in Landstuhl at 8 a.m. This is an excellent volksmarch with a magnificent castle. We have walked in Vianden several times and have enjoyed each one. It can be hilly, so be prepared. Contact Helen at helina@arcor.de for further information but do so quickly, because we’re sure this will be a full bus.

Next, for another trip that looks like the bus will fill quickly, join the HIWC for its weekend trip to the Netherlands on the July 4th holiday. Club members will do the volksmarch in Delft Saturday and then spend the night in Gouda. Sunday morning they will visit Kinderdijk, with its 19 windmills, before returning to Heidelberg. Contact Frank at fdunfrund@hotmail.com to get your seat reserved.

Finally, after being sidelined with an ankle injury, Maureen McHugh-Castro reports that she and husband Bill are back on the volksmarch trails. They recently attended the walk in Weiler, Germany, and said it was a beautiful trail through the woods and past the ruins of an old Roman villa. And we also heard from one of Lorraine’s colleagues, Rita Bergstrom, that she completed her first volksmarch. Rita and a friend drove to Bertrange, Luxembourg, for the walk there. Way to go, Rita: May it be the first of many volksmarches.

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We recently did the annual asparagus walk in Saint Odiliënberg, Netherlands. We met our walking friends Leah and Diana at the start hall and enjoyed the walk through the forests and farmlands. We heard that this part of the Netherlands is famous for its white asparagus and we saw people out harvesting a crop. On the way home we stopped at a roadside stand and bought a bag full. Now we’re looking for recipes on the Internet. (If you have favorites, please send them along!)

Finally, St. Odiliënberg’s 24th International Summer Evening Walk Series starts June 7. The hosts, W.V. Roerdal ’87, will provide different 10k routes every Monday evening through the end of August. The walks start between 4:30 and 7 p.m.

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“Dank u wel” to the contributors to this week’s column: William Castro and Maureen McHugh-Castro; Cath and Rob Floyd; Richard and Donna Glenn; John and Evelyn Golembe; Ramona and Horst Kechelen; John, Mary and Tess Laub; Tim and Luchi Lynch; “Pat” and Cheryl Patterson; Lew Harrison; Wayne Henry; Nora Hernandez; Jerry Lucchesi; Dave Miller; and Nancy Shawley.

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Miscellaneous short notes about this week’s events:

• Next Thursday is a German holiday, so there are a few walks this Wednesday evening that coincide with walks next Thursday.

• This week’s Stammtisch walk for the Stuttgart German American Wandering Club will be Sunday at Allmersbach im Tal. Start time is between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m. The prize is a B-medal.

Clark Soeldner’s Italian walking notes:

• “I did the Dolo walk in 2002 and I highly recommend it! The route goes along the Riviera del Brenta and past numerous villas.”

• The Villaverla walk is a special event for dogs. It costs 1 euro per dog and at the end, each dog receives a prize. The flier notes that a leash and “clean-up” is mandatory.

• In Baruchella, a basket of kiwi fruit will be awarded to the first 700 participants.

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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