Rota Vicentina

I recently returned from walking a large portion of the Rota Vicentina Trail in Portugal. I would love to do it again.

This was an incredible twelve day hike on the coast (The Fishermans Way) and a little bit inland (The Historical Way). The trails were easy to walk and very well-marked. I may have spent longer staring at and contemplating the ocean than actual walking, but it was time well spent. Heading back to Berlin after two weeks living out of a backpack was good, but I miss the tranquility and flow of walking in sand, listening to the waves crash on shore, and the overwhelming beauty of Portugal.

Rheinsteig Finale

We finished hiking the entire Rheinsteig, from Bonn to Wiesbaden, this past Friday. It was an incredible hike and quite challenging. The weather was mostly accommodating with only a few days of rain; for most downpours we were safely nestled in a hotel or restaurant. The seemingly unending ascents were difficult but manageable, with the steep descents being much more difficult because of the old knees we carry. We walked 320 kilometres and 79 hours. 

As we walked, I could not help comparing the Rheinsteig to the Camino, of which, we have only covered one week (from Paloma to Burgos). Our companions on the Rheinsteig have walked the Camino many times. Overall, the Rheinsteig has a lot more steep and demanding climbs than the Camino, unless you start the Camino in France where you have a mountain range you must negotiate before you get to rolling hills. The Camino is better supported for the long-distance hiker, with plenty of water fountains, snack stops along the way, as well as cheap accommodations scattered throughout the trail. The Rheinsteig has no water breaks, spotty refreshments, and expensive and sub-par accommodations. In Germany, there are also closed days for the restaurants, so coming into a town you cannot know what will be open, if anything at all. These Rheinsteig complaints, however, did not reduce the amount of joy and excitement we received from hiking the trail. It is a remarkable trail, with breath-taking vistas, and beautiful landscapes. I would definitely do it again and recommend it to anyone interested in long-distance hiking.

Typical Rheinsteig scenery.

Typical Camino scenery.

Rheinsteig Hund

Fourteen year old Ruby has been quite the trooper on our hike, climbing the big hills and scurrying down the slopes faster than the both of us. Nothing slows her down. In the evening she sleeps deeply with a bit of snoring and in the morning reluctantly allows the harness to be put on. She quickly, however, gets into the spirit of the hike and almost always leads the way.

Rheinsteig Way

One of the great things about the Rheinsteig trail is the diversity of the paths we are walking on, from cobblestoned streets to pine needle covered dirt trails, steep rocky ascents and descents to calm easy field trails. Below is a sampling of some trail surfaces we have walked on the past two weeks. I will add more as we encounter them.

Rheinsteig Structures

The Rheinsteig is scattered with old structures, castles, and other ruins. Tomorrow's hike includes plenty of UNESCO recognized castles and castle ruins and I look forward to seeing them and posting about them. Until then, here are some photos of structures we have seen over the past week and a half.

That's us of course, and in the background is Marksburg, above Braubach.

Sayn Schloss and fort above.

Schloss Arenfels with a modern freeway behind it.

Drachenfels.

Railroad bridge.

Rheinsteig Quixote

The past few mornings have greeted us with dense fog hiding the Rhein and most of the town we find ourselves in. In the woods, the fog creates a surreal, somewhat spooky, if not beautiful, vision. Walking on the path through the fog is a great experience, with the fog blanket disguising normal objects and limiting our view to our immediate surroundings.

Rheinbrohl and the Rhein River.

We found Don Quixote on a ridge overlooking the fogged in Rhein. Also a bridge leading the way to Rengsdorf. Lots of ruins, towers, castles, and mansions along the way.

Rheinsteig Hiking

We are three days into our Rheinsteig hike, with a total of three days, or 15 hours of hiking. Today is a rest day in Unkel, just south of Bonn. The hikes are wonderful walks through green, mossy forests, blazing green fields, with a bit of city and village walking thrown in. There are many views of the Rhein River along the way. As usual, the beginning and endings of each hike take a bit of work locating, but overall the hiking and the trails have been fantastic.

The hills bordering the Rhine are covered with vineyards. It is mostly white wines that are produced, so we have not been doing too much sampling. We have, however, been drinking plenty of beer and red wine from Spain. 

Travel Through Cooking

The food was so good in Spain I thought I would try to replicate what I ate during breaks. No bacon sandwiches yet, but it will happen.

White-Bean Stew

Potato Omelet

Camino De Santiago

In April, my wife and I joined friends in Pamplona, Spain to walk a section of the Camino de Santiago, from Pamplona to Burgos.

We had warm, blue sky days with great walking, food, and drink. We were in Spain over 10 years ago and it was wonderful to return. Our friends carried on to the end but we had to head home after Burgos, where we had a fantastic lunch. Perhaps we will return to finish the walk.

Fernsehturm

This hardly qualifies as travel, but last night I went to Kreuzberg to a writing session at the great bookshop Another Country. On the way home at around ten at night, I was waiting for my tram on Alexenderplatz and the Turm looked awesome in the misty moonlight. It is an iconic tower that can be seen nearly everywhere in the city and has a certain charm to it. We use it constantly when we are lost in Berlin.