Yesterday we went to the Black Forest, more specifically the Wutach gorge. We found it via the Komoot App (very handy app to find hiking or biking routes pretty much anywhere in Germany). There a lot of options in that area as the Gauach gorge and the Enge gorge are close by. Since we had quite a lot of rain in the last few days we decided to only hike in the Wutach gorge (the trails in the other gorges are supposed to be even more muddy than the ones in the Wutach gorge). We found a handy hint on the internet to park our car at the hiking parking lot in Boll, take the hiking bus (yes, there are hiking busses in Germany, just like in America) to the Wutach lumber mill and start our hike through the gorge back to car from there. The trail starts out as a wide pathway into the woods but changes quickly into a narrow trail close to the rocks. We passed a rock slide that made it necessary to install two bridges. They were sponsored by a black forest non profit club that takes care of the trails in the area.
The Wutach gorge itself possesses a stunning, almost ethereal beauty – the lush green vegetation coupled with the murmuring Wutach brook and the steep cliffs on either side reminded us of Zion National Park.
The trails were a little bit slippery but didn’t pose any problems for us (the hiking poles did help). We met quite a few fellow hikers on the trail (it was a Saturday after all) but it didn’t really feel crowded (if you want crowded, go to the Antelope Canyons…). And once we did happen upon other hikers we were greeted friendly – which was a real hoot for Nate. Every time he saw someone he started shouting „Hallo“ , „Guten Tag“ or „Ciao“ or he stretched out his hand for a high hive.
At the halfway point of our hike we arrived at the Schurhammer cabin. The cabin even has a bbq spot. The place was full of other hikers (mostly french) but Nate was, of course, only interested in the fire pit. A lot of people mistake Noam in his carrier for a normal backpack. They are startled once the „backpack“ starts moving or talking. One guy even said to me (and this is not the first time this has happened): „Oh, there’s another little baby!“.😂
Next up was the Tannegger waterfall, the last sight before we had to start our ascent out of the gorge.
This ascent was really quite something – 0.86 mls of switchbacks through the woods covering 330ft in height. Nate had to walk the last few meters as he was getting to heavy. After 6 hours (including breaks) we finally made it back to our car. Before embarking on our journey back to Stuttgart we decided to grab a bite to eat at the Inn next to the hiking parking lot. We even met a hiking group again that had overtaken us on the ascent out of the gorge.
After yesterday we really have to go to bat for the German hikers. They are mostly friendly, open and talkative (compared to most Germans that is). They even offered to let me try the sausage salad after I’d asked them if it was any good 😊
