A few impressions of my holiday in Germany! We visited the Hunsrück and stayed in Herrstein, but also visited Kirn, Idar-Oberstein, and Bernkastel-Kues. It was lovely!
On my return to the Plan Incliné (previous post) in 2021, I added a walk along some of the section that the boat lift bypassed. The canal behind this door (lock n°17) has been closed and emptied, the tranquil flow replaced by an overgrown stream, but the paths along it have been maintained, and some sections added to improve the walking or cycling experience.
The lock houses, homes to the workers, are still standing, some used by artists as galleries and workshops.
The boat lift was created to bypass a system of 17 consecutive locks which took a whole day to traverse. I didn't go along the whole route to lock n°1 (I probably would have if Arzviller train station was still open), but beyond the "lock ladder" on the Western side is a 2 km canal tunnel, still in service today and a bit of a traffic jam, as it isn't wide enough for two boats to pass.
I probably should walk the whole route one day. As it's along a canal, it should be easy gradients, it's just the distance between Réding and Lutzelbourg train stations that needs to be covered. I think it'll be worth it, and a chance to see the entrances to the tunnels too.
PATRIMOINE | Résidence fortifiée des évêques de Metz à Vic-sur-Seille (Moselle) À Vic-sur-Seille, une opération de l'Inrap a permis de dégager des éléments de maçonnerie du château, haut lieu de pouvoir qui servait à la fois de résidence des évêques de Metz mais aussi de chef-lieu administratif du temporel de l’évêché du XIIIe au XVIIIe siècle ➽ https://bit.ly/Fouilles-Vic-Sur-Seille
The Vosges Mountains, in North-East France, are a low mountain range, bordering Germany and extending between the French regions of Lorraine and Alsace.
A regions of splendid lakes and pine trees, with a rich diversity of plant and animal species. The Vosges biosphere is labelled at the UNESCO. Dears, chamois, badgers, foxes, beavers, grey wolves, hares, boars, lynxes, groundhogs… The western capercaillie is an endangered bird in the Vosges mountains, less than six of them exist today in the region.
Wild lilies, martagon lily, wild orchids, wild pansies, forest violets, gentian, anemones, sundews are flowers that we can find in the Vosges.
The Arnica flower is a medicinal plant used for bruises, wound healing, muscle aches, insect bites, swelling from broken bones and joint pain. 90% of the wild Arnica flower production comes from the Markstein plateau. Many pharmaceutical brands use arnica flowers freshly picked from the Vosges peaks - Weleda orders two tons of these flowers every year.
Quartz, Aragonite, Bismuthite, Hydrozincite, Cérusite, Rhodochrosite, Azurite, cuprite, copper, hematite, fluorine are minerals that are found in the Vosges.