Last But Not Least

The last day (Friday, 10 May) of our week in the High Black Forest area of Feldberg saw us climbing the very mountain that gives the surrounding communities its name. Almost two years to the day, on 11 May 2022, we had walked the Feldberg-Steig (a circuit taking in the summit, a few huts and a lake) for the first time. You can find my post about that day here.

Of course, as responsible nature lovers, we left the car in the hotel's car park and took the bus - but it was so packed that we were among the last passengers to be allowed on board. At the next bus stop, nobody got off, and so the four or so people who wanted to get on had to either wait an hour for the next bus, walk, take their own car (something that is actively discouraged by the authorities) or give up on their plan for the day altogether.

It was the warmest and sunniest day of our stay here, and hardly surprising, Feldberg was BUSY. Families with prams, dogs and children, cyclists - as the saying goes, the world and his wife were there. Still, as is so often the case with popular spots, as soon as you get away from the areas with shops and cafés that are easily accessible, the crowds thin out a bit.

We were never far from other walkers, but it was considerably quieter and rather pleasant after the summit.

View from the top of Feldsee, the lake below the summit.

Bismarck monument

Off towards the actual summit (a flat expanse, not a rocky top like many other mountains)

Blue gentian is rare - it grows only at a certain height.

A few patches of snow had survived in shadowy places, but that warm day certainly was their last one.

Feldsee, the lake you saw in the third picture of this post.

It is steeply uphill from the lake back to where the bus stops, cafés, shops etc. are.

Twice we stopped for shandies and then took the bus back to our hotel.

And like the day before, we went to look at the sunset over Feldberg after dinner; our way to say good-bye to this beautiful part of the world.