Day 63:
Rain and a cozy hotel room – the decision to stay a day longer in Shkoder was not hard!
Day 64: No rain...and we are off to Montenegro! The first impression is VERY good! Wow! It's hard to believe that Albania and Montenegro are neighboring countries!
Day 65: A rainy night and showers throughout the day. At least the landscape is breathtaking!
Day 66: A sunny day again, but we have problems with finding water and food. We finally manage to get water but we have to stick with our reserves. Broccoli cream soup and crunchy corn leave us hungry! :-(
Day 67: A cold but beautiful day! Montenegro is just....WOW!!!
Day 68:
Express-Sightseeing in the city of Kotor! The bay of Kotor really looks like a Finnish fjord. WOW! We camp at an old fortress way up the hillside. The only flat spot to pitch a tent is an old roadway which the cows use to wander around. This causes a very close encounter with a huge cow. We have to unbuild our rainfly to let it pass. It's a weird feeling to sit in a tent while 600kg on four hooves squeeze themselves through the narrow gap between rock and you...
Day 69:
In the morning we make a small detour to explore another fortress nearby. Later we cross the bay of Kotor with the ferry. In the evening it's raining heavily again.
Day 70: Unfortunately we have to leave Montenegro already...The first impression on Croatia is not so good...The customs officer is convinced to find drugs in Kevin's backpack and so we have to empty our packs and explain the purpose of EVERY thing...Later we have 2 more police controls. We definitely try to avoid them in the future...wild camping is illegal in Croatia and we don't want to have troubles...
Day 71:
Walking is easy and we make it to a monastery ruin where can camp – the view from up there is amazing!
Day 72: Express sightseeing with backpacks in Dubrovnik! This is an amazing town. The road north from Dubrovnik is shitty to walk on – no space for pedestrians, tons of traffic....and Croatian infrastructure sucks: no public water, very few supermarkets, almost no gas stations...
Day 73: We didn´t find a supermarket the day before, so we have to start without breakfast and walk about 20km to the next store...:-( The positive thing of the day: We saw dolphins in the Adriatic Sea!
Day 74:
We decide to walk a little detour along a peninsula. By doing this we avoid crossing the border to Bosnia and we have way less traffic than on the main route. Ston has a beautiful fortress and we find a pretty spot to camp in an olive grove.
Day 75:
Not every gas station in Croatia has or sells Gas. This is the first gas station since Dubrovnik and for some weird reason it doesn't sell us fuel. Wild camping in Croatia is not allowed so making a fire is not a good idea and we HAVE to rely on our gasoline stove. We really hope to get gas soon!
Day 76:
Icy wind! BRRRRRRRR! Free camping on a closed camp ground in Trpanj
Day 77:
Golden Jackals are howling the whole night in the hills around us! With the ferry we travel back to the mainland. The coastal road is shitty to walk on and camp spots are hard to find. We camp in an olive grove right across the street from a camp ground.
Day 78:
Today's goal: To wash ourselves in the sea – Accomplished! The water was a bit chilly though (12 degrees Celsius)
Day 79:
On such a beautiful day you have to make a break! We need time anyways to repair stuff, clean the stove, wash our clothes and bathe in the sun (in February)
Day 80:
If you don't find water (what happens quite frequently in Croatia) you have to buy it...It takes quite a long time to find a camp site (which means carrying the water quite a while) but then we can enjoy the last sun rays while sitting on a big rock 300m above sea level overlooking the sea and the whole bay!
Day 81:
Today we have the craziest fog we have ever seen – so tense that you don't see what's beneath it, but so close to the surface of the sea that the mast of a sailing ship peaks out. The sun is burning and we walk more into the inland – we want to walk AROUND the bay of Split (too many cities, too much traffic,...)
Day 82:
In the higher altitudes of the interior it gets freezing cold. Leaving the warm sleeping bags at -4 degrees Celsius is not appealing at all. At least during day it warms up and there is almost no traffic what makes hiking very pleasant.
Day83:
And we thought yesterday's morning was cold...Today it's -7,7 degrees!!! BRRRRR! In addition Kevin feels dizzy and nauseous what makes walking very uncomfortable.
Day: 84:
Kevin is still not completely well. The weather is good and walking is easier than yesterday. In the evening we have clouds what keeps night temperatures comfortable.
Day 85:
NEVER EVER try to do your laundry in a creek when nightly temperatures are below freezing...the water then has temperatures around 0 degrees, what surely stimulates circulation in the hands but it hurts so badly! Your socks will get wet but not clean! In a little village we get an invitation for coffee and rake (it was 9.30am) and a hot shower – NEVER decline an invitation like this. The shower was amazing!
Day 86:
The howling jackals once more kept us awake. Brunch and a beer boost our motivation to walk and the Krka River surprises us with an amazing landscape.
Day 87:
The village of Medvida, which appears on our map as a small town turns out to be a ghost town – bombed houses, collapsed roofs, abandoned fields and grazing lands... Where shall we get water here? Many kilometers after our planned rest we find a house where we can ask people for water...
Day 88:
SPRING!!!! We see 3 snakes that warm their stiff bodies and the first violets! In this area of Croatia finding a spot to pitch our tent is particularly difficult – stones, meager landscape without plants and to make it even more difficult...signs with „Danger Mines“ everywhere!!! Great! An old couple of sheep herders gives us water and a glass of wine and after a long search we find a spot for our tent. In a land that consists of 95% of sharp-edged stones we find an old grazing ground that is walled with stones – our own little fortress!
Day 89:
What a nice surprise! - We thought that it would be 250km to Rijeka but it is only 170km! After washing our dirty clothes in the sea it starts raining (of course!) and it won't stop....Our tent is really waterproof (still!) but you just don't sleep as relaxed if the rain is tormenting the outer skin of your house.....
Day 90:
Walking is hard today and the motivation is poor....we hoped on a shorter day but again we spend hours on looking for a suitable camp site....After a long 28km walk we crawl into our sleeping bags – without water and food. We just couldn't find any. Some days are like jinxed!
Day 91:
The first 12km we really hurry up – without supper the day before and without breakfast this is quite strenuous...In Karlobag we raid the first supermarket we can find and have a hearty supper. We also find an internet cafe (what is not so easy to be found in Croatia). Our map has run out and we don't manage to get a new one....Well we will have to play it by ear again....
Day 92:
The night was so stormy that we couldn't really sleep. We are proud of our little tent – it made a great job! The whole day we have to fight the wind. The gusts are unpredictable and almost blow us from the street or into the oncoming traffic. After a hard 30km-day we crawl in our sleeping bags...completely exhausted. We hope our camp is better protected from the wind then yesterday.
Day 93:
Today we have to speed up to reach the next village before noon. It's Sunday and the shops are only open until 12 o'clock. We stock up on food, chocolate milk and a bottle of beer. With so much of motivation in the pack walking is much lighter (even if it is heavier weight wise) We see an Austrian license plate with LL – Linz County! We come closer and closer to home! While searching for a place to camp, Kevin bumps his head badly – we are lucky that it is no laceration!
Day 94:
Today it is f***ing cold with slight snowfall in the morning – in addition we have strong, gusty winds. Only in the afternoon it gets slightly warmer and we can warm up a little bit on a sunny bench. While camping in the evening we get a surprising visit from a hunter. But he doesn't care too much – Ouf! That was close!
Day 95:
The wind decreased but the walking conditions for pedestrians along the road get unbearingly difficult. In the bay right before Kraljevica there is absolutely NO space to walk, the traffic is fast and whenever a truck comes we have to bend our backs over the guard rail so that we don't get crushed.
Day 96:
At -3 degrees in the morning we pack our stuff and head back to the dangerous road. Kevin discovers his passion to collect the little balls of ball bearings that you find a lot of in Croatian ditches (he just doesn't know what to use them for yet) In Rijeka we trekked through the whole city and it never seemed to end. Many kilometers after the city of Rijeka we finally find a spot to pitch our tent. For dinner we have chicken breasts in herb-cream. To debone a chicken at temperatures below freezing is NOT fun!!!
Day 97:
Today we (finally) leave Croatia! Before we reach the border we annihilate (to avoid customs) about 1,8l of beer that we bought the day before. To cross a border well oiled is really funny ;-) This time they don't search us and Slovenia greets us with friendly people, Austrian supermarket chains (Spar, Hofer, dm,...) and a landscape like home....We almost feel like in Austria!
Day 98:
-6,5 degrees and an icy wind throughout the day! At least the sun is shining! The forest soil is covered with snowdrops what fills Marita with delight!
Day 99:
As if it wouldn't be cold enough...we also have to cross a ridge and on the other side there are tons of snow. We are lucky to find a place for our tent that is more or less free of snow. For dinner we have a pork-mishap in Mediterranean vanilla cream sauce (if you don't know Slovenian it can happen that you buy cream where sugar is already added...)
Day 100:
Again -6,5 degrees....leaving the warm sleeping bag is not at all appealing! Today we want to make it almost to Ljubljana...But as we need to wash our clothes urgently and as the weather is really bad we decide to splurge and get a hotel in Ljubljana. After some search we find a (quite pricy, but luxurious) room with HOT SHOWER, central HEATING, Internet and kitchen – WOW!
Day 101:
We have to wash (almost all of) our clothes and so we decide to make a day of break in Ljubljana. We couldn't do any sightseeing because it was way too cold for the little bit of clothing we had left. We spent the day repairing Kevin's shoes, cleaning pots and water filter and to glue Marita's glasses (NEVER put your glasses in the dry leaves while cooking – to step on them is almost preassigned). In the evening we got our laundry back. The result: everything smells a little bit like cheesy trekking socks and our woolen socks for the evenings are about size 22!
Day 102:
In Ljubljana we arranged with Marita's parents to meet in Maribor the following weekend. This means we have to speed up to make it! The cold makes it a bit easier because it is just too cold to make longer breaks. After a successful day with 35km the pasta in Ćevapčići-cream-tomato-carrot sauce is especially delicious.
Day 103:
It is cold and walking along the road is boring. In the evening the snowfall gets more and the only water we find comes from a little creek. We will have to filter it and finding a camp site is also tough today. Again 36km – Marita is completely exhausted.
Day 104:
In the morning we have a few centimeters of snow – camping is not fun in this kind of weather! While walking the trucks and cars splash the mud all over us. We take the first opportunity to change to al smaller road and from then on it is much better. The snowing stops eventually and a nice family invites us for tea. In the evening we have to dig out a space to pitch our tent...
Day 105:
Finally it gets a bit warmer. The sun thaws the snow away and we speed up to reach Maribor in time. Marita is already quite wasted but the joy to see her parents soon keeps her going.
Day 106:
We walked way to far the day before. That's why we have a short day to finally reach Maribor. We make a break at a Hofer supermarket to have a second breakfast and a beer, stop at a Baumax to do some necessary shopping and reach the hotel at 1pm. There we shower, do our laundry and wait for Ilse and Pepi. In the evening we have an amazing dinner with beer and some nice talks in the evening....and before we even notice it is 1am!
Day 107:
The buffet breakfast in the hotel is amazing. We dig in and enjoy the luxury. We are totally not used to that! Together we explore Maribor, Ilse gives us a treatment of holistic pulsing (WOW!) for our tired feet and we talk about the hiking we want to do together in Austria in a few days from now. In the evening we enjoy another amazing meal. Life can be GREAT!!!!
Day 108:
After another big buffet breakfast we say goodbye to Marita's parents. They paid us another day at the hotel and so we enjoy this amazing day of rest. We buy yummy food and spend a relaxed day watching TV...
Day 109:
We ate so much the day before that we are not hungry at all for breakfast – we dig in anyways. Then we are off towards AUSTRIA! The bike ferry over the Mur River is not operating yet and so we have to walk a few more kilometers in Slovenia before crossing over to Austria....and finally, after a long day, we make it. IN AUSTRIA – the first time in over 4 years!
Day 110:
Lowest temperature in the morning: -9,7 degrees Celsius. We are so glad that Marita's parents brought another pair of down sleeping bags from home! Austria is very „hikable“ - small paths, walkways, bike routes,.... Today we get invited for coffee and in the evening for a „Jause“. Austrians are AMAZING!
Day 111:
The find of the day: a bottle of sparkling wine in the ditch – unopened. A champagne brunch is quite fancy but after a whole bottle....you feel so overacidified that walking gets hard. We won't do that again!
Day 112:
We can charge our cell phone in Fürstenfeld at a Hartlauer store (yes, we have a cell phone again. For the first time in over 4 years. We need it to coordinate our arrival with our families) and buy a hiking map. The weather is amazing and many people are in their gardens. That's why we fritter away a lot of time while talking to them. We reach our day's goal right after dark.
Day 113:
In Großpetersdorf we get an invitation for coffee at the Josefshof....soon the coffee became a dinner and in the end a nights stay on the couch. Quickly the news of the two crazy hikers spread in the village and everybody came to visit. Maybe it was also because they made a lot of Pizza.... We talked the whole night and went to bed at 6.45am...
Day 114:
After only 3 hours of sleep we couldn't hike on and so we passed the day putting up a fence, chop some wood and chat with all the nice people from the Josefshof.
Day 115:
At 10am we picked up Marita's parents in Oberwart – they will hike with us the next 10 days to come.... To leave at noon would have been too late and so we stayed yet another day with our new friends. Ilse and Pepi where mentally prepared for hiking and so they needed exercise. After a while a whole tree that was lying behind the house has been chopped up and was piled up along a wall.
Day 116:
After a heartily goodbye we start cross-country and on small forest tracks to Rechnitz. We have the luxury of accommodation – after the alternative and relaxed Josefshof... the evangelic youth hostel feels a bit stiff...
Day 117:
Today we climb the highest mountain....of the Burgenland! - the Geschriebenstein (884m) It is raining and cold....to warm up we make coffee on the Austrian-Hungarian boundary stone. After a steep descend we finally reach Lockenhaus where we reside in a luxury apartment (the spare beds where quite uncomfortable)
Day 118:
It's still raining and the whole day we walk through mud, mud and even more mud!!! The night we spend in a small pension with male cats marking their territory, air that is full of frying fat stench and furniture from the 50ies.
Day 119:
A whole day of rainy weather is not bad at all when your parents invite you to a luxurious accommodation with HOT SHOWER!
Day 120:
Today we cross into Hungary to get to Mörbisch. In a little village we get an invitation from a weird guy for wine and fresh milk. After going to a restaurant we have a few spare Forints. We spend it on Bananas and Hungarian chocolate. At a bike border crossing we head back into Austria and Kevin is reminiscing about his times in the army when he was stationed in the Burgenland – the old border post is still standing...
Day 121:
The wind is hard on us. We hurry up to get out of it. In the early afternoon we reach our destination. Kevin and Pepi indulge in the beer – good that the accommodation is in the same building. While Kevin and Pepi have profound discussions, Ilse and Marita spend a cozy evening watching TV...
Day 122:
After a big hangover breakfast for Pepi and Kevin we head up the Leithagebirge. The crossing of a mountain range and a total of 27km in one day – we are proud of Mama and Papa!
Day 123:
On a wing and prayer we head towards Schwechat. There we get a map of the metropolitan area of Vienna. Now we can dare heading to our capital city. There we meet with Camilla, Marita's sister. She is studying in Vienna and we can stay at her apartment. We celebrate the reunion with good food, wine and snacks.
Day 124:
Marita's parents join us for a few more kilometers (without backpacks). In Langenzersdorf we say good bye – the last 250km along the Danube we walk alone. From now on we will camp again....not too hard if the weather is fine and the meadow is blooming with snowdrops and bear's garlic.
Day 125:
The further we walk from Vienna, the less „traffic“ there is on the „Donauradweg“ - the bicycle path that runs along the Danube. In Tulln we buy food and cook a yummy bear's garlic soup in the meadows. We see the first mosquito this year! The immediate elimination brings an estimated 1 000 000 000 offspring less! In Langenschönbichl we get an invitation for beer and talk way too long....we have to find a camp site in the dark...
Day 126:
Today we pass the atomic power plant of Zwentendorf. It was never brought on line and today it houses a primary school and a solar power plant. It is also used as a spare parts inventory for German atomic power plants and as a training center for people that work in operating plants
Day 127:
Spring is here – finally! We see the first snakes – a grass snake and a dice snake – and the almond trees are in bloom (I didn't even know that they grow that far north!) Around Dürnstein there are steep rock faces which makes finding a space for our tent very difficult. We finally find a small space near a small back water of the Danube. We cook dinner on the rocks near the river and eat with view on Dürnstein – very romantic!
Day 128:
In Willendorf we visited the find spot of the Venus of Willendorf – one of the most important archaeological discoveries of Stone Age Art. In the evening it starts raining, the soil is muddy and we have to cook in the tent. Eventually it stops raining and we can spend a relaxed night. This night is also the change from winter time to daylight saving time – after sooooo much winter in the last weeks and months...this is a clear messenger for the warmer season....FINALLY!
Day 129:
There is incredible morning fog today. Walking is relaxed and uneventful. In the evening we have Chili con Carne and Gulasch. We are really not far from home. In the evening we phone Maureen, Kevin's sister to send out the e-mails to friends and family with the exact date of our arrival in Linz...
Day 130:
Great weather, a meat loaf breakfast and a quiet hiking trail...What more can you ask for? Finding a spot to camp is tough again. We climb up the Matrassteig and camp with the greatest view over the Strudengau ever!
Day 131:
A relaxed day with plenty of breaks – we are watching the cargo boats lining up at the water gate, doing our laundry in the Danube and enjoy the sunny spring day. We want to meet with Pepi in Wallsee but his meeting takes quite a long time and we can only meet at 5pm....we have a great dinner in a restaurant where we can also charge our call phone (to be available in the last days before our final arrival)
Day 132:
Short before Mauthausen we meet Stefan a pilgrim who was walking the Austrian part of the Camino de Santiago – from Vienna to Vorarlberg. Together we share a beer in the parking lot of Hofer market to have a chat. Again it takes a while for us to find a suitable camp site and we have to walk way over our planned destination.
Day 133:
In the night it started to rain and it doesn't really stop during the whole day. We are drenched – what a great homecoming! Soon the smoking chimneys of the Voest appear...not particularly the prettiest side of Linz. In Plesching we had lunch at a restaurant. The camp ground in Plesching was not open yet so we camped in the meadow – right at the gates of Linz!
Day 134:
Just hours to our final arrival. We dilly-dally towards the Donaulände, enjoy the great weather and are nervous like little school kids excited to see how it will be to see family and friends again after almost 4 ½ years. At 9.30am we arrive at the Lentos – what a great spectacle with many loving people! After 1575 days on the road.....finally back home!!!!!
