Rothaus, Black Forest

 Sunday 28/07/24

We left Harz on Friday and we could easily have stayed longer as we were really enjoying it there.  However, we were exhausted from cycling and walking up and down all the hills so spending two days driving had a certain appeal. 😊

Schlüchtsee, a nearby swimming lake

One is restricted to travelling at 80km/h when towing in Germany unless you get a special permit, which means travel is quite slow (albeit very good for fuel consumption) so we gave ourselves plenty of time to get to the south.  There are so many instances of road works in Germany, almost every bridge on the Autobahn is currently being repaired and that slowed us down even more (we have read that the bridge infrastructure across Germany is apparently under huge strain with all of the continuous traffic).

We spent Friday night on a campsite near Heilbron and then completed our travel yesterday, the final leg, a long, winding road into the hills of the southern Black Forest - an area we have long been wanting to visit. 

We went for a walk in Schlühüwana Park which has the most amazing wood art all over.

You get the feeling you are being watched!!

We're in a mid-sized campsite just outside the town of Brünlisbach with lovely access to walk and cycle paths,  so are looking forward to a week of exploring.  We are also only 34km from the Swiss border, so have noticed a mix of German and Swiss families in the campsite, all enjoying the summer holiday season.

Teeny, tiny frog

The model makes it look easy...

We've been invited to join Nathan and Charmaine on a barge move from London to Bath, which is a fantastic opportunity so, when we're done here we will travel to Tours (in France), leave the caravan on a campsite and dash across the channel to join them for ten days or so.  Very exciting!

Harz Hideaway

 Wednesday 24/07/24

On Sunday we left the Stadthagen house and camped for a night at Doktorzee before heading to the Harz forest.  The owners arrived back a little late as the knock-on effect of the Microsoft outage delayed some of their flights.

Dassie and Orthos drying between rain showers.

The campsite is crammed with 'tiny houses' for camping without a caravan.

A lovely nature area in the camp

We're in a rather rustic campsite (even though it has loads of lovely 'tiny-houses' for rent as well, but it is in the perfect location for what we wanted - time in nature.  There are  many walk and cycle routes and, in spite of the weather not being brilliant, we've already spent hours walking and cycling.

The campsite nestled in the valley below.

The forest has suffered from spruce die-back so many of the trees have died and are being cut down

The weather yesterday morning was perfect for cycling.

Toni practicing her German directions

We are really loving being in the caravan again and it's nice to be able to stop and enjoy an area, even if we will get moving south again by the end of the week.  

After thunderstorms yesterday afternoon we decided the 
weather was good enough for hiking this morning.

We walked all the way up to the forest observation deck but the promised views were lacking.

Someone found a use for the dead trees.

At least we got to use our waterproofs!

We're getting loads of exercise!

Lingering in Lauenhagen

 Wednesday 10/07/24

The houses here are styled on the original, old farmhouses of the region and are absolutely massive.
The gardens are also generally very well kept.  It is a lovely area.

We're getting cycle-fit while exploring the local country-side during good weather spells.

It has been interesting living in rural Germany for a few weeks,  and we've been able to explore the area by car, bike and on foot.  

The local area where we are is very flat, perfect for cycling when the weather allows.  Many Germans use their bikes here and it's very easy to get around on the roads and cycle paths. 

We visited nearby Hamlin, another stunning village

The weather has been unusually unsettled this year but we've generally been able to adjust our plans to suit the weather.  Molly loves her walks around the neighbourhood and we've been grooming her daily, which she loves - even Filou comes for a brushing most days. 

We've found the local villagers to be very friendly, and are regularly stopped and greeted on our daily walks.  We've even bartered some of the many eggs from our hens for bread, honey and even chocolate! We're feeling very accepted in the community.

One day we are wrapped up in jackets, the next we are in shorts!

Heinrich III, master at waking everyone nice and early

In fact, we have three roosters here so it can get a little noisy.

At least the slugs have been enjoying the wet weather

There are also three ewes with five lambs between them on the property and, although they are owned by a local shepherd and not our responsibility, we got the knock on the door when they escaped down the road and started eating the neighbours' gardens.  

Luckily Toni and I are can-do people and quickly herded them back into the field and secured the fences.  As a thanks for keeping an eye on them, the shepherd regularly brings us huge Çöreks, Turkmen leavened breads. They are delicious....with the many eggs that we are also collecting!

One of the Çöreks, from the Turkmenistan shepherd

We still have a week and a half before the owners return and then we're planning on travelling to the Hartz forest for a few days, before heading further south to the Black forest.  Whilst we are thoroughly enjoying our time in the house-sit, we are also looking forward to spending time in the caravan again, to explore Germany further.

The Germans love their ice-cream.
We couldn't resist some as an Affogato - delicious!