Hiking in Germany Hiking and Riesling in the Palatinate There are certainly regions in Germany with a higher profile than the Palatinate – even the natives of this part of southwestern Germany would probably accept that without objections. The Palatinate’s problem is that it is a little “stashed away” at some distance from the busy transport…
Still Day Dreaming of Adventures and Glory? Continuing, in a fashion, from where I left with my last post (the final item on my “Summer reading list about hiking”), here is something which is not directly referring to hiking – actually, quite honestly, it makes no direct reference to hiking at all – but which…
When you read this, we will probably be on our way, exploring the hiking trails, castles and vineyards of southwestern Germany on the invitation of the Rhineland-Palatinate Tourism Board. More of that soon. We will be away all of this week and try to keep you up to date as much as we can, but…
Day Hiking in Germany A Coal Mine Called Nightingale Nightingale or Nachtigall Colliery (“Zeche Nachtigall“) at the foot of the Muttental trail prides itself on being the “cradle of coal mining” in West Germany. Coal was actually dug out of the surrounding hillsides as long as 300 years ago, and in 1839, at the very…
Got Two Hours in Cologne? Cologne is one of Germany’s main hiking hubs: whether you are going to the Rheinsteig, the Rothaarsteig, the Eifelsteig or any other trail in the Northwest of Germany, you are likely to pass through. But rather than just hopping off the airport bus into Cologne central station or using the…
Day Trip from Paris The Chateau de Fontainebleau Located approximately 30 miles south of Paris, the Chateau de Fontainebleau is probably the second most famous castle in France. The contrast to the undisputed champion, however, could not be starker: Versailles is so famous because it perfectly captures the personality of its “first owner”, the essence of…
What to See in Germany While I don’t think it is slanderous to call most, perhaps all, of its cities ugly, Germany’s old industrial heartland of the Ruhrgebiet is still a great place to visit. Mainly for two reasons: One, the Ruhrgebiet landscapes are nearly always interesting and can, occasionally, be downright idyllic – something that people…
Easy hiking in Germany Meet the Lake District of the Ruhr A few weeks ago, we travelled all the way to the Mecklenburger Seenplatte in Germany’s “Far East” to experience a near-Scandinavian blend of beauty and bleakness. This week, we discovered that we could have had all of that much closer to “home”. Well, nearly…
Hikes near Paris It was just after our picnic lunch on the Carrefour de Denecourt when Mrs. Easy Hiker started to sing the praises of hiking in the Ile de France, thanking the Hiking Gods for making all local trails so conveniently flat. She hadn’t quite finished her sentence when we went on a steep…
Hiking Trails near Paris Hiking the Marais of Misery You may have heard about Paris, Texas. Today, I will take you a little further east, into the swampy lowlands of the Essonne river, straight into the bayous of Paris, Louisiana. But first, we have to take the train into the Deep South of the Ile…