Dieppe to Geneva walk 2023

Sunday, 4 June 2023

DAY 48 - MAMMERN to KONSTANZ (Saturday 3 June)

Another day of sunshine as we followed the Rhine eastward. We took a combination of bike paths and footpaths, with the occasional bit of road thrown in.

Heading eastwards by the Rhine

Sometimes we were on footpaths, sometimes on bike paths

The bike path was often just next to the train line. The trains were fairly frequent, the bikes constant.

We passed masses of bike riders all through the day. Some were clearly locals, while many were fully kitted out and were obviously touring. Many of the photos in today's post will inevitably include cyclists in the background - they were everywhere.

Watch out for bikes - they were everywhere: on the roads, on the bike paths, and on the walking paths

There was also an airship

We had our first rest stop of the day in Steckborn. We sat by the river, eating some healthy fruit and being entertained by the antics of a passing great crested grebe.

Healthy Fruit stop in Steckborn

The great crested grebe - what a bird!

From Steckborn we continued eastward along the paths. We had our next stop at Arenenberg, where one of us spent a bit of time visiting the renowned Napoleon Museum.

East from Steckborn

On towards Arenenberg

The path to Arenenberg went inland, and uphill

The Napoleon Museum at Arenenberg - great views and a fine museum

The Louis Napoleon Bistro at Arenenberg was full, but we found a peaceful rest area to wait while others visited the museum

From the Museum we headed back down to the Rhine. There was a picnic lunch stop at a rest area just off the walking path. Then we just followed the paths eastward along the river until we got to Konstanz. We crossed back into Germany and found our way to our accommodation.

Coming down from Arenenberg

We came across what looked like a World War II bunker

And then another one

It turns out that's exactly what they were - part of a network of fortified structures built between 1937 and 1940 to help protect the country against possible German invasion

Along the Rhine and back into Germany

Day 48 - Birds

Day 48 - Elevation Profile

Day 48 - Route

Day: 48

Distance: 25.05 km

Walking time: 5 hrs 15 mins

Elevation gain: 312 metres

Cumulative distance: 1,077.64

Friday, 2 June 2023

DAY 47 - SINGEN to MAMMERN (Friday 2 June)

We left Singen in the early morning sunshine, and took a cycle path about 15 kilometres to Stein am Rhein, crossing the Swiss border on the way. It was straightforward walking - pretty flat, and mostly close to the road.

Leaving Singen with the sun shining down on us. We didn't get to see Singen in the rain.

We saw some of the sights of Singen on the way out

There was a good view back towards the Hohentwiel, which we had visited as part of yesterday's walk

Leaving Germany by foot

We rejoined the Rhine River shortly before entering Stein am Rhein. The riverbank leading into the town was popular with sunbathers and resting cyclists. We followed the river to the town's port, and installed ourselves in a riverside restaurant for lunch.

Into Switzerland, where you can drink the water from the fountains, and the walking paths are clearly marked

Approaching Stein am Rhein - the first glimpse of the Rhine River since entering Germany over a week ago

Entering the town along the river bank

A long queue had formed for the boat out of town, while recently-arrived Australian walkers were sitting down to lunch

Stein am Rhein is a picture-postcard Swiss town. It is one of Switzerland's most famous attractions, drawing tourists from around the world. After lunch, we joined the multitudes wandering about the streets of the old town.

The old town, Stein am Rhein

We left the town via a bridge over the Rhine. After stocking up on dinner and breakfast supplies at a local supermarket, we followed a walking path and then a cycle path to the village of Mammern, our overnight stop.

We left Stein am Rhein as other tourists were coming in

We made our way down to the river

And followed the paths to Mammern

Day 47 - Birds (including a couple of new ones and a welcome reappearance of the great crested grebe)

Day 47 - Elevation Profile

Day 47 - Route

Day: 47

Distance: 24.22 km

Walking time: 5 hrs 02 mins

Elevation gain: 230 metres

Cumulative distance: 1,052.59

DAY 46 - ENGEN to SINGEN (Thursday 1 June)

It was a day for exploring ruined fortresses on the top of extinct volcanoes

Our accommodation host this morning told us that there are 18 volcanoes in the area. Some of them have ruined fortifications on them, and 3 of these were on our route today. There were a few other highlights before we reached the first of them. We saw a couple of hares not far out of Engen. There were a couple of storks in Ehingen, the first village down the road. And we were able to have some healthy fruit for morning tea in Mühlhausen, the next village along.

Some early morning highlights - a hare by the path, storks and a maypole at Ehingen.

We found some healthy fruit at a bakery

The bakery lady saw us taking a picture of the healthy fruit, and offered to take a photo of us as well

After our morning tea break, we walked up to the ruins of the fortresses of Mägdeberg, Hohenkrähen and Hohentwiel. There was a steep climb up to each of them, and excellent views from the top.

Ruined fortress of Mägdeberg

Exploring the ruins at Mägdeberg

From Mägdeberg we picked up the Querweg (long-distance path from Freiburg to Konstanz). There were a few other walkers on the path from there on. The next stop was Hohenkrähen, another extinct volcano with a ruined fortress on top. We had a wander around the ruins and ate our picnic lunch before moving on.

We were back on the Querweg

And heading towards Hohenkrähen

We stopped to photograph a dragonfly on the way up. Well, it was pretty steep.

Hohenkrähen - a bit steep to get to but wonderful views from the top.

Another few kilometres of enjoyable walking on the Querweg took us to Hohentwiel. The ruins here are substantial, and you have to pay an entry fee to see them. There were quite a few other tourists exploring the site while we were there.