The train usually takes you to the mountains but we had to take the bus. The reason for this is due to a train accident just outside the town where we stayed. It was a very bad accident with five dead and scores injured, so the bus gets very crowded. I’m sure it’s run privately and I think the owners used to pack sardines. The bus was 30 minutes late and there was an unusual [...]
It was time. I had a mountain to climb, and my main purpose for this was to put my research into action. I’ve been walking uphill slowly so I don’t put too much pressure on my AF heart. If I do this, and over 1000 metres with no repercussions then this means I can confirm that it is not the height that causes my AF and therefore should be able to climb maybe over [...]
We like walking, sometimes love it, but to walk two kms to the wrong end of town to see the info officer who told us to go back if we wanted a difficult walk. She suggested we climb Mount Wank. There is no end to German words echoing English words. I can roll them off my tongue so easily: There is fhart, der crapfen, schitten, koch, dick and so the list goes on. It [...]
We said goodbye to our gorgeous hosts: Briggite and Richard, they were superb, he for giving me detailed information re places I asked him about, giving me burners on a stick to find our way home from a sunset, and just being available. Then her, she so genuinely wants to help no matter what it is, and both, were very friendly. We came upon her one day walking Ofra in her favourite part of paradise. [...]
We left late for our mountain at midday on a warm, short shirt sleeve day. We were feeling great. Up the river which had already lost most of its wildness but still had that lovely sound that only fast flowing rocky rivers can make as the water hits a boulder then crashes, the steeper the river the deeper the sound. The mountain began with a gentle slope as we followed our river upstream. The stream [...]
It rained all last night and this morning, so we set out to climb a hill. Gorgeous hill, and very steep meaning we left the river way down below a hundred metres or so and it was fascinating looking down through the newly culled forest. I was thinking of these tall timber lookouts for maybe a couple of people about three metres up. I had been trying to work out what they were for [...]
Okay, no hiding it, let’s get it out, I’ll be honest with you - no sunset, no the world hasn’t come to end, well, nearly! The sun did set but not for us, it wasn’t as though it knew we were coming or anything like that, and thought: ‘I’m not coming out tonight’. No it was less complex, or maybe not, I’ll let you work it out and see what you come up with, if [...]
It rained all night and seemed to have gotten that out of its system for there was just a dribble and by early afternoon it was off on a slow walk because we are going up and I’m going to monitor myself very closely. We’re at 800 metres before we start. It was the waterfall at about 1000 we were after. So a real foresty start as we climbed leaving the river further and [...]
We were saving our last night in our hotel-restaurant called Milano to have dinner there, but alas it was closed for the first time the owner said, in 40 years. Why? The chef left with no note! As she said this she raised her left arm in an l-shaped pose while slapping her biceps very strongly with her right hand then shouted a naughty word. Maybe he couldn’t stand the owner smoking over a pot [...]
Another German couple in for breakfast, minding their own business until we said hello. From a nearby village they were here for shopping and loved meeting people especially Australians. He knows us well and likes us as he also does, our trains. He engaged with us so much we did not hear our German friends’ warm greeting; I forgot what I had and had not eaten for breakfast; Corrie said yes to another coffee [...]
