A Week of Vacation in the Black Forest of Germany

Followers of this blog might have come across the names Griet and Wim in the past. My cousin and her husband are more than just family; they are friends and fellow travelers who have visited us on many occasions. Every year or two, they joined us on our sailing catamaran Irie in the tropics (once with their then teenage children), they stayed at a house sit in California, and, last fall, they traveled with us in Peru for three weeks. Whenever we are in Belgium, we spend a lot of time with them (two weekends this summer, involving beer brewing) and – when time permits – we go on trips together.

Since Mark, Maya, and I dedicated two full months in Belgium, we decided on a ten-day vacation in Germany and Liechtenstein with them. If you know us, traveling the world is our lifestyle; we combine chores, work, driving, visiting, and leisure. Vacation time – strangely enough – is rare. To be honest, this trip with Griet and Wim was my first real holiday in 21 years and Mark’s first week off, since he started his current job two years ago. So, it was a special occasion!

Being from Belgium, it is hard to believe that I’d never set foot in the Black Forest! And, even my cousin and her husband had never vacationed in Germany before. Mainly because none of us speaks the language, although we did just fine and knew enough German to get by. Other than Mark. 😊

We broke up the 7-hour drive to the Black Forest with a walk and sandwich lunch stop at the popular and crowded Geierlay suspension bridge. It is the second-longest one in Germany.

(As always hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Our group spent four nights in the northern part of the region, in an apartment in Enzklösterle, which was surrounded by woods. Ideal for walks with Maya.

The Airbnb was well equipped and we especially liked the outdoor space. The weather was good enough to have happy hours on the balcony. We cooked some meals at home, often packed sandwich lunches. and ate out every other day or so. This routine kept the trip affordable.

From Enzklösterle, we made daytrips to the surrounding villages and natural sites. Our rough schedule during those ten days was to leave around 9:30am and return by 5pm; quite busy for Mark and me.

Day one:

• A viewpoint over the region

• Well-known Baden Baden

• A nearby waterfall

• Touristy Mummelsee

• Baiersbronn, where there was nothing to see, so we moved on to Kloster Reichenbach

Day two:

• Karlsruhe, which was touted but not that special

• The cute, pretty, and romantic village of Ettlingen – my favorite town and where we tried the local dish Flammekueche.

On day three, Mark and Maya took a long hike in the woods, while the Belgians drove a loop of three towns:

• Calw with its striking timbered houses

• Nagold with its attractive castle ruins

• Altensteig with its cool facades and fort

On moving day, Wim brought us to Furtwangen with stops and more grocery shopping along the way. It was another full day!

• Viewpoint

• Allerheiligen Waterfalls and hike

• Bad Peterstal-Griesbach, where I took a little break and the others went on another hike

We stayed three nights at a less attractive apartment in Furtwangen to explore the southern part of the Black Forest, offering us two full days of exploration.

Day one:

• Triberg, where its waterfalls were the highlight

• The famous Cuckoo clocks

Day two:

• Ravenna Canyon, where we hiked a tough trail

• Titisee, which was extremely busy and not worth the stop

• Hexenlochmühle, where we finally tried the Black Forest cake

On the long drive to Austria, where we would stay three nights to visit Liechtenstein, we stopped by Wutach Gorge, still in the Black Forest, for another streneous hike. It was a popular destination for tourists. The season was not slowing down yet, towards the end of August.

We followed the northern edge of the Bodensee (Lake Constance) to avoid Switzerland, as we didn’t buy a highway tag for that country. The area was pretty, with views over the massive lake and vineyards. A vacation option for the future?

The five of us arrived at the next Airbnb in Koblach, Austria – a winner – around 5pm again. The excessive heat would play us parts, but it proved to be a decent base for the last two days of our vacation. Stay tuned for Liechtenstein!

Next up: Leisure in Liechtenstein

Curious about a previous ten-year chapter in our nomadic lives, which includes eight years aboard a 35-foot sailboat in the tropics with dogs, check out my compelling, inspiring, and refreshingly honest travel memoir: