My host in Freiburg, Kerstin recommended to take this 18 km walk which begins with a climb to the top of the tallest mountain in Baden-Württemburg. But first I had to take the train to Feldberg – Bärental, a scenic journey through the Schwarzwald and past the shores of Titisee, a large blue lake in the region. From the station I took a bus, squeezing on as the last passenger, to Feldbeger Hof.

The initial climb is quite steep but once I had reached the Bismarckdenkmal the path rises gently towards the rather unprepossessing summit of Feldberg. It is barely more than a pimple on the hill, but nonetheless it is the highest point. On very clear days one can see as far as Austria, Switzerland and France but today I arrived before the view turned up. I could not see more than 100m to the west as the mist had not cleared.

The remainder of the walk follows the ridges around the valley with Feldberg remaining visible for the greater part of the journey. Enjoyed my picnic lunch in the warm sunshine sitting on the world’s longest viewing bench. 44m long, it consists of several viewing "lounges" carved from tree trunks. It is close to Stübenwasen, the 5th highest peak in the Hochschwarzwald. The bench overlooks the town of Todtnauberg and the view is outstanding!

Nearby I stopped for a coffee at Berggasthof Stübenwasen, one of the hüttes along the way. Here I managed my usual trick of taking a wrong turning after a break heading north towards St Wilhelm instead of west towards Notschrei. Worse still, my wrong path took me downhill so I had quite a climb just to get back to the Gasthaus. At least I had the good fortune to meet another hiker named Christof and we had a good yarn as we ascended the hill. 

The walk to Notschrei was through a pleasant forest (and flat!). The route goes past the Nordic Center which today was totally deserted. How different it must be in winter covered with snow and cross country skiiers.

The final leg of the walk took me past farms and a very smart looking resort hotel near Hofsgrund. But then I saw something much more remarkable. As I walked along the ridge away from the hotel I noticed a couple aged in their 70s coming towards me along my path. They were clearly well-prepared for their afternoon hike, lathough the man took a rather minimalist approach:  hiking boots - check, hiking socks - check, sunhat - check, hiking pole - check. But THAT WAS ALL.  Everything else was au naturel including all the dangly bits.  

Shortly after, your tired correspondent arrived at Schauinsland for the grand finale: a cable car ride back to the outskirts of Freiburg. This was just brilliant - a trip that takes 20 minutes to descend 746 m across 8 cable spans over a distance of 3.6 km AND connects with the city public transport system.