Friday 18 May 2012
| Distance (km) | 16 kms | |||
| Distance (time) | 5 hrs | |||
| Climb / Descent | 335m / 524m | |||
| Hard / Soft surface | 70% / 30% | |||
| Landscape |
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| Weather |
 16° 4 Bft
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It was an unexpectedly cold night and so in the morning we have a hard time to get going. While it was sunny yesterday, today is grey and windy. But as long as it doesn't rain we cannot really complain (or only just a bit). We finally leave the camping site and after visiting the local pharmacy (for sports tape) and bakery we can start our walk. We have to search a bit where the GR5 continues from the bridge where we left the route yesterday but in the end we pass the village while we're almost sure that was not the intention. But anyhow, at the last houses we see a yellow circle again and so we're fine. There is also a bench here so we first just have to eat the chocolate rolls we got from the bakery.
The route just continues along the stream we walked yesterday in the last kilometers. We are for sure not the only walkers today though most of the others seem to be day trippers. Occasionally we pass nice rock formations and for the rest it is mostly trees. After a few kilometers the route turns left and steeply up. We actually think that is nonsense because a bit further on it comes down again to Grundhof. So we decide to be stubborn and we just keep following the stream. The last bit is over a tarmac road without any traffic. In Grundhof there is no escape: we have to leave this little valley. It is a serious climb, first through the fields and then into the forest. Then the tracks stays at the same altitude for quite a while after which it leaves the forest again with a final climb. Here we find out we're wrong because we're leaving the forest too early and pass along the camping site of Berdorf. It is not really a problem because in Berdorf we can just rejoin the route again, but it adds an extra kilometer of tarmac we would have rather avoided. In Berdorf we have our lunch break on a bench along the road. We hardly have our sandwich made when we feel raindrops falling. Typically when having lunch. It only rains about 5 minutes, fortunately, so we can just finish our lunch. Berdorf is a rather dull village and we leave it again passing through the fields. The route again joins a stream and then keeps following it. This is truly a magnificent piece with impressive rocks, caves and narrow passages. There are a couple of large stairs cut into the rocks and they are very slippery. So descending has to be done very slowly. Eventually the path slowly moves away from the stream to end up directly above Echternach with a nice panorama. After the descent in several hairpins we pass through the town and along the bus station towards the river after which we follow the river towards the bridge that goes into Germany. This is also hard tracks and the feet are starting to notice. We cross the bridge into Germany because directly at the other side there is a camping site. It is indeed next to the bridge, but the entrance is of course all the way on the other side and so it is still a walk. And then at the camping site we get a spot....next to the bridge, so we have to walk back again. It is not that bad though, because we can walk directly from our tent onto the bridge tomorrow. In the evening we decide to visit the pizzeria that is also next to the bridge and that is a good choice. We are hardly inside when it starts raining. We enjoy or pizza and a bottle of wine while the rain keeps coming down. That lasts over an hour, about until the time we want to go back to our tent. Perfect planning... |
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