Thursday 5 January 2017

A Snowy Walk

On Monday, I was still at O.K.'s, and the plan was to go on a hike. We woke up to a grey day, though, with rain or snowfall threatening any time, and decided against a hike. But we still wanted to go out, stretch our legs, breathe some fresh air, and went for a walk instead, not venturing too far from the car in case things would be getting worse.

A few random snow flakes were beginning to fall just as we got into the car. Driving through Offenburg and out at the other end was more wet than white. But as we left the town centre and parked the car at the bottom of a hill called "Hohes Horn" ("High Horn", at 547 m the highest elevation closest to the city), it was snow instead of rain, and there was already a thin layer of it on the ground.

The day was still grey, and we walked into a dense fog, plus it was snowing more and more by the minute. We were dressed for it, though, and determined to reach the top of the hill, with 3 km of a (mostly gentle) uphill path ahead, through the woods.

A viewing tower - its fourth incarnation since the first tower was built here in 1891 - is at the top, and we very carefully climbed it, even though we already knew we were not going to see much. Still, I found the very quiet, still atmosphere in the woods enchanting, and we can always return here another day when beautiful views of Offenburg and across the Rhine valley all the way to France in one direction and back across the Black Forest towards the Kinzig valley in the other direction can be enjoyed.





 View from the top platform - you can just about make out the path we came up on:



As far as I know, on a less foggy day you could see the city of Offenburg here:


Or is it this way?

The wooden hut at the bottom of the tower came in useful for us to at least for a moment take down our hoods, wipe glasses and get rid of the snow that had been accumulating on our coats.

The way back down:



As it had not stopped snowing since we had come up, the further down we came, the less visible our original footprints were, until they completely disappeared.



 Can you see it? There are houses there, barely visible:



The vineyards look very different now from when I showed you their beautiful autumn colours!



Walking up had made us think we had dressed in too many layers, but going back down required a lot less effort and we were just beginning to feel a bit cold by the time we reached the car again.

We had worked up quite an appetite, too, and were ready for steaming mugs of hot coffee at home.

16 comments:

  1. I feel dizzy just looking up at that tower in the photo :) I never liked climbing open stairways like that even when I was younger and I definitely wouldn't dare do so now. (I'm glad as long as I can manage one or two steps on my very safe step-ladder at home, when necessary...)

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    1. My sister is like you in that respect, Monica. I was only worried about slipping in the snow on the steps, but I didn't. Still, just to be on the safe side, I made sure to hold on to the railing especially when climbing down.

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  2. The winter scenery was very beautiful! The walk through the snow sounds nice.

    We're expecting about 3 inches of snow here tomorrow night. I'm so excited! I'll be posting pictures of my own wintery walks soon!

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    1. Thank you! Wait until you see the winter scenery from our walk the next day - that was different, and maybe more beautiful.
      I am looking forward to seeing pictures of your own snowy walks!

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  3. Looks like a lovely walk and so peaceful.
    I would be happy going up the steps, it's the coming down I'm not so keen on :)

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    1. It was lovely and peaceful, Karen.
      I held on to the railing carefully while coming down those steps. It wasn't slippery the way I had expected it to be; the people who built the tower had thought of that, so that the viewing platform would be accessible in all kinds of weather.

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  4. Mist over a snowy landscape and the quietness of the forest, that must have been wonderful. Every sound is immediately absorbed, terrific!

    (First time for me to comment here, Meike, although I follow your blog for a couple of month)

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    1. Hello Beechwood Insights, and welcome to my blog! I have seen your conversation with YP on his blog, that you have just started your own blog, and am going to check it out now.

      It was so peacefully quiet, all we could hear was the crunching of snow under our feet and of course our own voices when we were talking. Road traffic was muffled in the distance, and the odd bird could be heard - that was all.

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  5. I can feel the quietness. I would have loved that walk for its quietness and the snow provided I had a companion. I've always coniferous forests oppressive and whilst I love deciduous forests on my own I can only cope with a coniferous one if I have company.

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    1. Yes, you mentioned before that coniferous forests are not your favourite place to be. I understand what you mean about the slightly oppressive feel, although for me, it feels more cosy and homely than oppressive. On the other hand, I would not want to live permanently down in a dark valley surrounded by the Black Forest.

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  6. Love the snowy photos, I am ready for that cup of hot coffee too! Hope you had some good cookies with them!

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    1. We did, Kay, we did! And not much later, we had a nice hot evening meal, home-cooked by O.K., with some red wine which lasted us for the rest of the evening :-)

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  7. Just so beautiful. I like the fog though I'm not sure I've ever walked in it.

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    1. It is enchanting walking in the fog, but less so when you drive. Good job we did not have far to go!

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  8. I think these images are just as beautiful as the previous ones, actually! I love the way dense fog gives everything a slightly spooky, otherworldly feel, especially in the woods. I bet that was a great walk. Our walks tend to be short-ish (young children) with lots of stops (children and dog) but we do occasionally manage what you'd call a hike, and I just love it. x

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    1. It was a great walk, and a lot less cold than it may appear.
      I really like fog, too, for the mysterious mood it adds to the scenery.

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