From Maur to Binz
A journey across Germany
Germany is a fantastic travel destination. From the high mountains and deep forests to whispering creeks and the majestic ocean, Germany and its neighbours offer everything a passionate outdoor enthusiast could wish for. For Stefan Taft, marketing manager at Maier Sports, that was reason enough to once again go on a little adventure.
Starting our tour: Maur and Köngen
Our journey began in Maur in beautiful Switzerland on 18 June 2020. The town near the environmentally-protected shores of lake Greifensee is our current home and thus the perfect starting point for a journey which would take us all the way from Switzerland via southern Germany to the island of Rügen in the Baltic Sea.
We started by making our way across the border into Germany and to our initial “pit stop” in the Swabian city of Köngen, home of Maier Sports. This was a great opportunity for us to fully prepare for the trip ahead by taking along some reliable outdoor clothing. As it turned out, we made the right decision, as the weather wouldn’t always be kind to us in the coming days.
Saxon Switzerland
The first real stop on our journey was the German region known as Saxon Switzerland. Real hiking enthusiasts have always known and loved this region for its fascinating, highly varied landscape.
Rathen
Our first point of interest in Saxon Switzerland was the beautiful little town of Rathen. With its cosy cafés and numerous souvenir stores, it is very popular with tourists from all over. Luckily, when we arrived on 19 June, there were no other tourists around, leaving us to explore the beautiful town on a sunny 23 °C summer day at our leisure.
After getting the lay of the land, we started hiking through the Elbe Sandstone Mountains to Neurathen Castle, enjoying the fascinating sandstone formations and the amazing view of the surrounding landscape along the way. One sight to behold in this area is Bastei Bridge, a 76 metres long sandstone bridge. Its excellent view of the ruins of Neurathen Castle made a deep impression on us.
Unfortunately, we needed to take a rain check on the kayak tour along the Elbe river we had planned for the afternoon, as torrential showers and a significant drop in temperature soon made the prospect of engaging in water sports very unappealing to us. But, as one door closes, another opens: We decided to visit Königstein Fortress instead, which currently hosts a very interesting exhibition on the “Evolution of War over the Centuries”.
Hrensko and Schmilka
The following day (20 June), we took a boat to the neighbouring Czech Republic – to Hrensko, to be exact. This cosy little town was the ideal starting point for a hike along the Kamnitz Gorge. We followed the traditional route, taking the boat upstream and then on foot towards the village of Mezná and the Pravčická Brána sandstone arch. The landscape here is so beautiful, we almost felt like the characters from The Lord of the Rings on their journey through the Shire. Though unlike the Fellowship, we ended our wonderful little trip by simply returning to the town of Hrensko later in the day.
We then took a boat back to Germany, stopping only to enjoy a drink in a beer garden in Schmilka – what a lucky find during the Coronavirus situation. The little town of Schmilka borders the Saxon Switzerland national park with its small half-timber houses, rustic inns and numerous organic farms. During our stay there, we realised there’s a good reason Schmika has been awarded the title of “Saxony’s most beautiful village”. What a perfect conclusion to our eventful day.
Off to the shores of Rügen
From the Saxon Switzerland region, we then travelled up north towards the town of Binz on Rügen island. Arriving at the beautiful coastal town, we moved into our quarters and then set off on an excursion to the famous Königstuhl chalk cliff. Travelling along the hiking trail, we first reached a beautiful beech forest before continuing along the coastline to the 118-meter-high Königstuhl. The surrounding landscape and the churning sea were a breath-taking sight, so we took our time to drink it all in and explore the area. Lucky for us: Despite the fickle weather and cool temperatures, there was no fog to obstruct our view.
The following days, we also engaged in what might be our personal highlight on our trip to the Baltic Sea: We joined a course to obtain our catamaran qualification, based on our existing skills for driving a dinghy, with the sun warming our backs and wind forces between 5 and 6 providing a real challenge. We enjoy this aspect of mother nature as well, so we can only recommend taking the course – it's an absolute must for any sailor.
We spent our last day on Rügen on the beach, dining on fresh beach mussels and fish sandwiches while enjoying the majestic view of the Baltic Sea.
The Spreewald area – a true marvel of nature
Our last stop on our journey across Germany before leaving for Maur again was the Spreewald village of Schlepzig. Once there, we start a 6-hour kayaking tour along the Spree river which would soon feel like travelling through the Amazon, thanks to the beautifully wild and varied marshy landscape.
Unfortunately, torrential rains on the next day lead us to abandoning the idea of exploring the Spreewald area by stand-up paddling (SUP). But once again, we found a great alternative: We first sampled some of the famous Spreewald gherkins before letting a Lübbenau ferryman show us the waterways of the area on his barge. A perfect and very comfortable end to our journey across Germany.
Explore your home and find your new favourite places
Despite the occasionally bad weather, our journey across Germany was a great experience. Travelling its roads, hiking trails and waterways allowed us to gain a whole new perspective on our homeland and it’s a great way to explore the varied landscapes as well as fascinating flora and fauna of middle Europe. In the current situation in particular, my advice to outdoor enthusiasts everywhere is: Get yourself to the countryside and enjoy everything it has to offer.