Welcome to Transeurotrek.com 2nd Trek - Germany: Brandenburg to Saxony
Germany Munsterland to Brandenburg
France Aveyron to Haute Provence
FROM NORTH SEA TO ADRIATIC
Germany - Brandenburg & Saxony
FIFTH SECTION - 1 December to 10 December 2007 Belzig (Brandenburg) to Zossen (Brandenburg) by E11 & E10 205 Km (1200Km).
Despite investment in its public places and a lovely ancient layout, Belzig is a poor-looking town. Headed north through undulating woods and fields in a cold, clear weather with some light rain - easy walking on sandy paths. Huge pine forests with clumps of silver birch and flat low-lying woods and fields. Remarkable 8-sided 14th century church in Golzow. Discovered wonderful Soljanka Soup - great for cold days. Turned east through Lehnin with its 13th century Cistercian monastery, now a protestant church and medical and training centre. Lakes around Ferch and Caputh. Entered Potsdam through old industrial zone with rundown housing. Visited Sanssouci park and palace - wonderful even with the plants wrapped up against frost - and Neues Palais built in 1760 to celebrate Prussian victory in Seven Years war and the splendid golden Chinese House. Visited the large busy Xmas Market. Continued along River Havel to Klein Glienecke, the old border between East and West Berlin. Pretty route through parkland by lakes and sandy tracks through Grunewald Forest to Charlottenburg. Followed River Spree through parks and allotments and pleasant residential areas to Charlottenburg Palace and thence to Brandenburg Gate. Returned next day to Potsdam to start our southerly trek now on the E10 to the Adriatic. The signs read 1050Km to Holland and 1750Km to Sud-Tirol. The easy sandy track took us through large fields with well-maintained drainage ditches. Impressively rich farming villages (especially Tremsdorf - salt water spring made it wealthy since 15th century): elaborate late 19th century mansions with basements for animals and warehouses behind high walls. At Glau the cemetery holds the bodies of German soldiers killed by the advancing Soviets in 1945. The area was occupied 1945-90 by Soviet troops and is now a nature park. Gasthauses Xmassy with fires and decorations. Large flocks of geese overhead. Followed 19th century Notte Canal from Mallensee to Zossen, an important 20th century military centre.
SIXTH SECTION – 25 January 2008 to 4 February 2008 Zossen (Brandenburg) to Bad Muskau (Sachsen) by E10 198 Km (1398Km).
Re-tracing the route taken by the 1945 Soviet advance on Berlin, we left Zossen past two obelisks: one to German Unification and victory over France in 1871 and the other to Soviet liberators and those who died for freedom and independence in 20th century. Zossen cemetery holds April and October 1945 graves of elderly men and women and children plus some 'unknowns'- killed in the advance, presumably. Past large apartment blocks painted in bright colours and onto open meadows, pine and silver birch forests and lakes. Mostly flat and quiet - winter wheat and no animals. Large holiday villages of caravans and chalets in woods and by lakes from DDR days. Followed canal of the River Dahme on lovely track to Maerkisch Buchholz which has a new river driven power plant. Lots of streams, tributaries of the River Spree, with flat bottom punts and motor boats; swamps and lakes with swans, geese, ducks and herons. Entered the Spreewald - big well-drained fields of winter wheat and gherkin. Centre of the gherkin trade is Luebbenau - beautiful town of 17th century aristocratic houses restored after DDR neglect. Through Lehde, isolated in a network of wooded waterways accessible on foot only since 1960s. Summer holiday area. Along River Spree into Cottbus - industrial town with a small historic centre, large housing blocks looking poor despite their new bright colours and attractive gardens. Pretty woods and meadows and prosperous houses on the River Spree to Spremberg - saw a kingfisher and an otter. Nice town with a refurbished central square. Large cemetery for Germans and Soviets from April 1945 and a fine memorial to 38 murdered in a local concentration camp. At Reuthen we found a 19th century brown coal pit stretching over 2 Km with a cemetery of lives lost between 1880 and 1960s: neglected and atmospheric and we spent some time wandering through it. This is a Sorb area - a slavic people here for hundreds of years with traditions and language still retained. Entered Saxony and continued through extensive 19th century country estates stretching across the River Neisse to Poland. An overwhelming experience to see Poland just ahead of us. The large street market on the east bank selling cheap goods was an ugly sight though.
SEVENTH SECTION 15 to 20 July 2008 Gablenz/Gora (Sachsen) to Seifhennersdorf (Sachsen) by E10 218Km (1616Km).
Started in a previously flourishing glass industry area, now quiet. The brown coal industry continues but we saw no sign of it. Small towns re-built after 1945 without architectural interest or charm. However, lovely countryside which deserves more tourists than we saw. Quite flat to the River Neisse, forming the border with Poland, with pleasant mixed woods. The river is surprisingly narrow - not much more than 10 metres. Both banks are overgrown and have no crossing points between the occasional bridge. Barley, rye, wheat, rape being harvested. Plenty of raspberries, bilberries, crab apples along the way. Lovely flowers - cornflowers, verbascum, toad flax, poppies, tansy, dianthus, evening primrose, ragwort, harebells, meadowsweet, daisy. Peacock and Camberwell beauty butterflies. Slight roll to the terrain giving interest all the way to the Czech Border. Overnight in Niesky - industrial centre in the DDR and still with busy firms - pleasant working town. Ground rising slowly as we moved south through quiet out-of-the-way prosperous farming countryside with villages of renovated traditional cottages. Best countryside since The Hague. A mountjack deer crossed in front of us, tracks of boar and hare. Hills with cheese ring rocks. Our last night in Germany spent in Obercunnersdorf, a gem of a village - mediaeval houses still occupied fill this village yet there are no tourists and just the one hotel outside the village. Early start for our walk into Czech Republic. Few people around even in the small towns leading to the border at Seifhennersdorf. Where are the people?
DISTANCE IN GERMANY – 1168Km = 730 miles
DISTANCE FROM NORTH SEA – 1508Km = 942 miles Half way!!
