Beginning of October 2018, we are on the Albsteig hike that follows the creek “Alb” from its mouth up to its source. This is day #3.

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Day #3: From St. Blasien to the Feldberg

After an excellent breakfast at the Domhotel we start our third day walking.Today we will follow the creek Alb up to the sawmill “Glashof” and then continue along the Menzenschwander Alb up to the Feldberg.  It is another day with deep blue sky. The red berries of this sorbus tree above Menzenschwand contrast with the sky.

In Menzenschwand we find another wooden chapel. It is a few minutes after 12 o’clock.

An elderly lady opens the door, takes a red rope from a hook on the wall and devotedly rings the bell – for the midday (or shortly thereafter). I watch the scene standing in the doorway. The situation is to solemn to take a photo. “Yes, I do that every day at about midday”, she tells me in a friendly voice.

Menzenschwand is a romantic village with houses that are typical of the Black Forest.

I could imagine spending a few days here.

I have a long chat with a lady – also retired – that has decided to settle in Menzenschwand with her husband. They own a large house built in the local style of the Black Forest. She is working in her perfectly kept garden, while her three months old dog with still huge paws does not really trust me.

Radon has been found around Menzenschwand and the Radon Revitalbad promises to revitalise your body.

We walk to the end of the trough valley of Menzenschwand and see the Caritas House in  front of us in the saddle – it looks small from here – and we look forward to the waterfall of Menzenschwand and to then climbing uphill in the shady forest to the Feldberg.

At the foot of the Feldberg there is the Menzenschwander Wasserfall. It can be accessed by car and is well visited. “Oh, look, a rainbow”, the tourists say, climbing up the steps along the canyon.

This rainbow reminds me of another waterfall that I have seen with Ernst almost 18 years ago. It was at the Iguazúfalls in Argentina, where we had this long discussion whether it is a small bucket of gold or just a treasure that you find where the rainbow hits the ground… I neither verified that this time.

From the bridge along the waterfall, I look back to the canyon, where the Menzenschwander Alb jumps from one pond to the next. The roof behind the canyon is a restaurant – but now it was too early for us for the great German tradition of coffee and cake or Kaffee und Kuchen.

Yes, the sun is shining and it is very, very warm. We see the slopes of the Feldberg and now really look forward to climbing uphill in the shade of the trees ahead of us. But, no, the Albsteig has a surprise for us. From the waterfall we have to turn right to the “gate of happiness” with a beautiful view back to Menzenschwand. The path then continues along the slopes and takes us almost back to Menzenschwand (on a higher level). Here the path turns sharply to take us uphill on a meadow with many goats and a billy goat in love (you could smell that). In front of us, we again see the Caritashouse in the saddle of the Feldberg. We get impatient, we want to go uphill now – but no, now the blue squiggle marking points down and back to the waterfall. At the end we have done a loop of almost 360 degrees at the foot of the Feldberg in the burning sun, just adding kilometers that were no fun. We have to overcome a second smaller loop back in the direction of the waterfall, until the Albstein squiggle finally leads us uphill towards the source of the Menzenschwander Alb. In the shady forest our mood brightens up again.

From this small waterfall, a zigzag path leads up to the source aera of the Alb. There are many small puddles in the ground… may be, one day, the architects of the Albsteig path will add an explanatory table about the source of the Alb which actually was the target of the Albsteig hike.

We reach the Feldberg area near the Menzenschwander Hütte (hut) and take the bus to the Hotel Lawine, where we find our luggage waiting for us. The hotel garden is still in the sun. We have German cake with a refreshing beer and a refreshing “Neuer Süsser” (new wine that has just started to ferment). Our evening meal is fresh trout from the Black Forest stuffed with mint herbs for the two of us – excellent. The restaurant is occupied up to the last table, with locals and tourists. Grand-ma (Oma) of the hotel Lawine goes from table to table using her walking frame to have a chat here an there, with her kind eyes. The boss is serving as well, together with a very agile servant from Croatia. Yes, the atmosphere is welcoming and very familial.

After our third long day, we again slept well in our cosy rooms.