There are a few interesting walks on hand this weekend. For volksmarchers in the Eifel, Baumholder and Kaiserslautern, Germany, areas, the walk in Kleinich will be convenient. The prize for completing this walk is a B-medal. With luck, you might be able to get one of their stuffed dogs with a scarf and stocking cap, if there are any left over from two years ago. While you are in the area, make sure you visit Bernkastel-Kues after the walk and see this remarkable city.
Marchers at Forstfeld, France, might want to visit the nearby town of Soufflenheim, known for its beautiful pottery. After walking Forstfeld’s 10-kilometer trail Sunday, stroll through the shops in Soufflenheim that display their pottery, usually painted with boldly colored flowers or birds. The hours to start the walk in Forstfeld are 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. You must be finished by 5 p.m. Our favorite pottery store in Soufflenheim, the Graessel pottery shop, is open 2-6 p.m. Sundays. Check out the pottery at poterie-graessel.com.
We’ll most likely go to the walk in Schinveld, Netherlands. It is very close to us, and we enjoy walking in this area along the Dutch/German border. The route often takes us past a restaurant by a glider field. We doubt we’ll see any gliders in this weather, but it’s still a nice place to stop.
No matter where you walk this weekend, be careful of the ice and snow. These walks will take place regardless of the weather, and if there are icy conditions, the clubs cannot clear the entire route. Just take it easy and have fun.
Meanwhile, February marks our seventh year as writers of this column! Since our first article in 2006, we have met plenty of new walking friends and have seen beautiful cities and gorgeous countrysides on the trails across Europe. We are indebted to the folks who send us fliers with volksmarch information; we couldn’t produce the weekly walk chart without them. Please keep them coming!
Email volksmarch information to two.walkers@yahoo.com. Mail brochures to Bob and Lorraine Huffaker, CMR 460, Box 278, APO AE 09752. This column was prepared for the Feb. 1, 2013, edition of Stars and Stripes.
