A Winter Weekend in the Harz
The German Winter Is Still Alive It still exists, the German winter. In truth, hardly anyone had really expected it anymore—least of all Deutsche Bahn and the municipal snow-clearing services 🙂 But yes, while snow and icy conditions are more of a nuisance in the city, elsewhere both states of aggregation create a true winter wonderland, for example in the Harz Mountains. And since Frank and I had such wonderful experiences snowshoeing and cross-country skiing in the Aosta Valley, we want to try our luck in Braunlage on Saturday. Why everything then turns out a bit differently than expected—you can read about that in this story.
Nobody Home
Of course, we’re not the only ones with the idea of heading to the Harz this weekend. But we didn’t realize just how hectic it would be. First, we try calling several ski rental shops to get snowshoes. Unfortunately without success—either the rental place doesn’t actually have any, despite what their website says, or nobody answers the phone. Fine, then it’s plan B.
First things first: as a tennis enthusiast, I need to calmly watch the women’s final of the Australian Open. Both players kindly stick to my imaginary schedule and finish right on time at noon. So we get into the car and drive to Braunlage. We already suspected that finding a parking spot might be a challenge. But we’re lucky in that the lines of parked cars around Torfhaus are manageable, and we smoothly find a parking space in an industrial area on the outskirts of Braunlage. That means a few minutes’ walk to the ice rink—but that’s no problem for us.
Fog Banks on the Wurmberg
Since the snowshoe plan didn’t work out, I suggest heading up the Wurmberg. I’ve done that a few times in snowy conditions before, and it was never an issue. This time, though, things are different. Near the ice rink, we follow the hiking signs toward the Wurmberg. At first it’s all quite relaxed and easygoing—then suddenly we find ourselves on a downhill ski slope.
Uh, is this actually the official run? At least we can’t spot any sign indicating otherwise. We see two or three other hikers and think that we can’t be completely wrong. But the skiers are racing down the hill in all directions, so before long we start looking for a way out. At the next opportunity we turn left and reach the mid-station of the cable car. Well—and this is where the odyssey begins. First of all, we’re faced with two challenges:a) Where does the trail up the Wurmberg actually go from here? b) Why has it suddenly become so foggy?
The route is supposed to continue past the Rodelhaus Braunlage on the right. We’re a bit suspicious, because if we’re not mistaken, we’ll have to cross the ski slope. And things there are getting increasingly wild. In addition to snowboarders, there are beginners of all kinds milling about. I can barely watch—it all looks so chaotic. Anyway, somehow we make it across to the other side, where it looks like this path might lead up the Wurmberg. Just to be sure, we ask three female hikers coming toward us, who confirm our assumption.
For about 100 meters we have some peace and quiet—then it starts again. Here too, skiers are coming toward us. And so it continues. At the next junction, by now the fog is so thick that we can hardly make out the cable car above us, we finally turn back. There’s no point in continuing. We could either trudge on through deep snow or risk getting run over by skiers. Neither option sounds particularly appealing.
Spinal Gymnastics in Deep Snow
We walk—or at least try to—back to the mid-station. We still hope to find an alternative way down, but that doesn’t really work out. Instead of going back down the same slope we climbed, we keep going straight ahead. At first it looks promising, but at some point we end up on a road that unfortunately is quite busy. Then we spot a path to the left that’s supposed to lead back to Braunlage.
Well done. In places we sink in so deeply that our spines get a proper shake, because it feels like stepping into empty space. Fine—we’ll just have to push through. Eventually we reach the road to Braunlage, where we can at least use the footpath. The churned-up, slushy snow makes progress pretty tough, but salvation is in sight.
Back in Braunlage, we agree that we don’t need to repeat this hike in winter ever again. We end the day, however, on a cozy note in the sauna 🙂
Up High via the “Himmelsleiter” in Goslar
The winter Harz adventure enters round two on Sunday. Frank suggests climbing the “Himmelsleiter” (Heaven’s Ladder) of Goslar’s Market Church. From up there, you’re supposed to have a great view over the city. In fairly icy temperatures—around -6°C—we climb the many wooden steps, some of them quite narrow.
The real challenge comes right at the end: before reaching the viewing platform, we have to climb a very narrow and very slippery ladder. Definitely not for the faint-hearted. Once we’re up there, though, the view over the city is truly overwhelming. It’s only from the north tower that you realize how beautiful Goslar’s old town really is. If it weren’t so icy up there that day, you could easily spend half an hour just taking it all in.
A bit chilled, we finally head back down to solid ground. From there we walk through the partly very slippery city center toward the train station, with the goal of hiking to the Steinberg-Alm.
Bavarian Coziness in Northern Germany
Along the way, we marvel at how the snowfall of the past few days has transformed the landscape. Everything is bathed in white. Ice crystals have settled especially beautifully on the trees and individual branches. It looks simply enchanting. After a good half hour, we reach our destination: the Steinberg-Alm. As expected, it’s quite busy today. Still, we’re served fairly quickly and first warm ourselves up with our drinks.
We enjoy the relaxed atmosphere, let our thoughts wander, and plan the rest of the day. It’s already starting to get dark by the time we’re back at the parking lot. Even if this Harz weekend turned out differently than expected, the snow-covered landscape still managed to enchant us.
