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Journal: |
The weather looked ominous when I got up at 7:30am and by the
time I left after breakfast at 8:45am, it was raining lightly but
steadily underneath a very low cloud cover. The higher crags
around were covered in mist and it looked set to be a dreary Sunday.
Looking at the map, the route that the Querweg was taking to Singen
was anything but the shortest. In fact, some of the signage
gave the option of following Querweg to Singen (20.0km) or taking
the "Direkt Weg" (12.0km). However, having made the decision
to have a short day to Singen, which looks to be a large town, there
wasn't much point in getting there before early afternoon when I
would have some hope of checking into accommodation. The
indirect route was an attempt to link up all of the high points
between Welschingen and Singen, and I was somewhat sceptical about
the chances of getting any good views given the weather.
It
was quiet, save for the occasional peal of church bells from one
village or another and the patter of raindrops on the bright green
leaves in the forests. The first crag, Hohenstoffeln, didn't
yield any views, though I didn't take the out-and-back side-trail to
the summit (844m), given it was already foggy where I was. The
trail then crossed a rural valley and took a number of field paths
which had me questioning my decision not to take the "Direkt Weg".
The grass and nettles were sopping wet and the trail was overgrown
by German standards (but still a six-lane freeway by Australian Alps
Walking Track standards!). It didn't look like too many people
walked this way and my boots and shorts were becoming sopping wet.
However, having reached a ridge, I began to think there was
value in the detour. There were several basalt crags to the
south, each with the ruins of an old castle just visible through the
low cloud cover. The trail then followed the ridge east and
then south passing close to each crag and castle. You had to
admire the ingenuity, skill and hard work that must have built these
castles in the almost unassailable locations. I wondered
whether they were all operational at the same time and represented
small fiefdoms, or whether they each had their day in the sun.
One small highlight was encountering, at a point where a narrow
country road crossed the ridge, a guy out for his long Sunday run.
It was perfect weather for a long Sunday run, and I was a little bit
envious.
The last castle overlooked the very large town of
Singen and seemed the most accessible with a restaurant and museum
half-way up, and what looked like a good trail to the top.
However, I didn't feel like making the climb (at any of the castles
I passed), but could appreciate and see a lot of the artisanry from
where I was.
On the way into Singen the path passed by the
Hotel Widerhold and, after checking with my iPhone that there seemed
to be wi-fi, I checked in soon after 2:30pm via the adjoining
Chinese restaurant. After a shower and washing some stuff out,
I read my email while watching Austrian TV coverage of the Queen's
flotilla on the Thames. I then wandered into, and around, the
city centre for an hour and got some cash and bought a few goodies
at the large railway station. German shops do not open between
lunchtime on Saturday and Monday morning, so you have to plan
accordingly.
On return to the hotel I discovered that the
Chinese restaurant had an All You Can Eat menu that wasn't too
expensive so I ate there before retiring to my room to catch up on
correspondence, diary and other stuff with French Open highlights on
TV in the background.
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