Click here for this week’s European Volksmarch schedule.
Mark your calendars! These are some interesting walks that we think you would enjoy. Read the volksmarch column for the appropriate week for walk details. Instead of waking up on a Saturday or Sunday morning and realizing you are too busy to go on a Volksmarch, mark it on the calendar now, so it becomes the priority item for that day and the other stuff will have to wait until after the walk!
The walks listed below are convenient for some of the military communities, and several are associated with special activities or exceptionally beautiful countryside. Start planning now so you don’t miss a walk near you.
• Sept. 28: Vianden, Luxembourg. This is the site of a magnificent castle and beautiful countryside. There are plenty of hills, so be ready for some ups and downs.
• Oct. 4 and 5: Mölschbach, Germany. Hosted by the Wanderfreunde "Gut Fuß" Dansenberg. Kaiserslautern folks, you won’t find a walk much closer!
• Oct. 11: Welkenraedt, Belgium. This is another nice Ardennes walk.
• Oct. 11 and 12: Grafenwöhr, Germany. We have never walked here, but the flier makes it sound like the local club is going all out.
• Oct. 11 and 12: Emmerts- grund, Germany. A very close walk for you Heidelberg walkers.
• Oct. 11 and 12: Wiesbaden-Klarenthal. This is nearby for Wiesbaden area Volksmarchers.
• Oct. 18: Kleinglattbach, Germany. This walk is convenient for Stuttgart folks.
• Oct. 19: Böblingen, Germany. Also close to Stuttgart.
• Oct. 25 and 26: Kindsbach. This town is on the B40 between Kaiserslautern and Landstuhl. This is another very convenient walk for folks in the Kaiserslautern Military Community.
• Oct. 25 and 26: Koblenz. Nice trails through beautiful fall-colored forests. We have walked here three times and have enjoyed it every time. This is the weekend you get your lost Daylight Saving Time hour back: make that extra hour count by spending it outside on a trail!
• Oct. 31: Lommel, Belgium. This is a big Halloween walk. In the past, they have closed the city center and had a huge party. Many of the houses are decorated and there is no telling what kind of creature might jump out at you as you walk through the forest. With any luck there will be a full moon!
• One of our favorite walks takes place in Luxembourg this weekend. Saturday you can walk in Wiltz, where past 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.
This Sunday, we will be going to our neighboring town of Schinveld, Netherlands, for a walk through our neck of the woods.
• This week’s military-history walk is in Groesbeek, Netherlands, where the Liberation Walk will be held on Sunday. This not an IVV walk, but the start card will allow free admittance to the Liberation Museum. The usual admission fee is 8 euros. I (Bob) frequently mention Battle of the Bulge museums in Belgium and Luxembourg, but this is an excellent museum that covers the fighting during Operation Market Garden as well as the impact the fighting had upon the local Dutch citizens. We walked it last year and it was excellent. The museum alone is worth the trip.
• The Ford automotive plant in Saarlouis, Germany, hosts its 36th 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 Ford Fiesta in 1:43 scale.
To reach the event, take the Saarlouis Steinrausch exit off Autobahn 8 if coming from the Luxembourg or Saarbrücken direction. If driving from Kaiserslautern or Karlsruhe, take the Nalbach exit. It begins at the Ford Werk, Kantine Halle B.
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Thanks to the dozens of club members and volunteers who helped with the Heidelberg International Wandering Club’s Volksmarch Sept. 6-7. We thoroughly enjoyed the new trail and loved talking with old friends.
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Miscellaneous notes about this week’s events:
• Kützberg, Germany, hosts its fourth annual torch walk on Saturday. Start the 5K between 7 and 8 p.m. A candle is the prize. Let’s hope this is the first of many torch walks this fall.
• Start cards at Wednesday’s Konz-Krettnach, Germany, walk cost 1.50 euros for children 14 and younger. However, they will receive a coupon worth 80 euro cents to use at the event. Krettnach is southwest of Trier.
• Just north of Amberg, Germany, is the suburb of Ammersricht, which is hosting 5-, 10- and 20-kilometer trails this Saturday and Sunday. All three courses have fairly 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). They are offering B-medals this year, but last year the souvenir was a stuffed bear with a hat and scarf. You might be lucky and get one of them. This is close to the folks in the Grafenwöhr Military Community.
• The walk in Budoia, Italy, is the 36th edition of the Marcia dai Funghi, or mushroom walk. It is held in conjunction with the mushroom festival, so food is available at the end. There also will be vendors selling all types of fresh mushrooms.
• After the walk in Castlefranco Veneto, be sure to explore the old walled town. It’s well worth the visit.
E-mail volksmarch information to two.walkers@yahoo.com. Mail brochures to Bob and Lorraine Huffaker, CMR 460, Box 278, APO, AE, 09703-0278.
