Extra-value Day
This was an extra-value day, so full of pictures that when we finally got back to our room we realized that if we compulsively did the full Blog thing as we usually do, we'd easily be up past 1AM.
Taking our mutual compulsions firmly in hand, we merely culled the day's pictures, which means a pleasant half-hour of bending over one laptop, choosing the better shot out of two (or three, or sometimes eight) pics of any given subject. That done we put the computers to sleep, and not long after 10pm, ourselves, also. Blogging waited until today, Saturday, when we have an afternoon free in Koblenz. So, here's the intended route of a drive past some castles and cliffs.
In fact we got lost once and backtracked 10km, and another time there was a long and badly-signed detour. But this was the plan.
Burg Hohenzollern
The first stop was Burg Hohenzollern, which rises on its hill above the motorway like a medieval ghost. (Check the wikipedia page for history, dimensions, etc.)
We were #3 into the carpark, which is quite a bit lower than the castle, so we began the morning by climbing the Foßweg zur Schloss which was more like climbing a woodsy fire-escape for 265 steps plus a couple of slopes.
Sound effects of heavy breathing.
At the top you enter through a series of three gates separated by ramps and drawbridges...
…before reaching the keep.
From the castle walls there are great views over the countryside.
There are a ton more (well, six or eight more) pics of Hohenzollern and the view from it in the gallery, including a very nice brass cannon. But it's a busy day, we have to move on!
Beuron
Now we headed for Beuron, a castle supposed to be contained within a large monastery. The route entered the valley of the upper Danube, where what will later be a huge river, but is now quite small, starts cutting a valley into limestone. The roads are the usual immaculate German secondary roads, beautifully paved and graded (never a pothole), but also with no shoulders and very infrequent turnouts.
Coming around a downhill curve we spotted a tiny cemetery tucked in the trees and pulled off to check it out.
A small sign read in German, "Military Cemetery: Here rest 84 soldiers from various wars. 37 from 1814 and 24 from the second World War." One of the graves had been recently decorated. It was a quiet and beautiful spot.
As we turned to leave David said, "Huh. Wonder where that path leads?"
Where it lead was a hidden viewpoint down onto Beuron in the Danube valley.
A view no tourist every sees!
In fact Beuron didn't look so interesting close-up. The guidebook said we could stay until 6pm and hear the monks doing Gregorian chanting. No time! We ate lunch in the car park and noted the start of fall color, before moving on.
After taking one wrong road (should have waked up Julie but we thought we could find our own way for once—wrong!) we got down into the Danube valley which is quietly spectacular.
The Danube reflecting a bridge.
Several more valley views in the gallery.
Schloss Sigmaringen
Schloss Sigmaringen fills up the center of a small town of the same name. We had nice Kaffe unt kuchen (in fact, we split a slice of Sacher Torte) in the town plaza, but the big Gothic pile really didn't grab us and after licking up the crumbs, we went on without taking a picture.
Burg Lichtenstein
Lichtenstein castle was a surprise. The approach from the south winds through the woods and never gives a clue as to the castle's real appearance. You walk up from the car-park through the gate, thinking, "ok, nice wall, nice moat, so?" And then you look over a wall,
Hey, we're on a cliff!
…and realize, this thing is perched on the edge of a precipice!
Fortunately there is a view area from which you can see it.
We were so thrilled we had to sit down and rest.
Funny, I keep hearing small voices...
More views around Burg Lichtenstein in the gallery, including a shot of the Royal Weed-Whacker. However, for an extra-special treat, available only to readers of this blog, if you click the following picture and save the resulting image, you will have a picture of Burg Lichtenstein with sufficient detail to be printed 11x17 and framed. Or made into a jigsaw, or whatever.
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