Travel Through the Black Forest, Germany

I am based out of Heidelberg. I'll take you around the city and show you the sights including the castle, the old bridge, as well as some lesser known sights in the Heiligenberg. These include a Celtic ring wall dating back to the 4th Century B.C., the ruins of a thousand year old Monastery known as the Michaelskloster, and the Thingsstätte, a giant open air theatre connected with the dark history of the Nazis. After a full day of hiking and sightseeing, we will double check our gear, do some bonding over a nice meal and some drinks, and prepare for the exciting trip ahead. Transportation details: 34 bus to Waldschenke Biergarten, walking to sights then down to Heidelberg via Philosophers way.

We will leave Heidelberg early to travel by S-Bahn (light rail) to Forbach, Germany. This is a beautiful little town with an old wooden covered bridge and lots of charm. You can get some snacks if you like, and we'll stop at the Gasthous Adler for lunch before continuing on a steep climb to our destination, the camping site is at the Schwarzenbach Dam or if that is booked, the Campingplatz Errbersbronn. On the way we'll see a small church and get a nice view of the area from the Wasserschloss Forbach-Raumünzach. Transportation details: Heidelberg to Karlsruhe via S3, then to Forbach via S8.

The Schwarzenbach Dam rustic campsite must be reserved through the Naturparkschwarzwald. These back country sites are limited to 3 tent pitches per location. Each spot has an outhouse, sometimes a fire ring (though not at this stop), but usually not much more than that. You'll be at peace out amongst nature away from all the distractions of modern life. This site is a true hidden gem. If this site is reserved, we will be staying at the Campingplatz Errbersbronn. Transportation details: Mostly uphill hike (~4.8 km) to campsite

We will start the morning with a lovely hike around Schwarzenbach lake, then take a couple of buses to our next destination. At our stop in Sand we will take a detour to see a waterfall (Gertelbach-Wasserfälle) and grab some lunch. Then we will continue on to our camping site for the night. There is the optional detour to visit Mummelsee, a small lake with legend of mermaids. Here there is a hotel + some small stores to do some souvenir shopping and get something to eat/drink. We will then carry on to our camping spot for the night. This spot has small platforms to elevate you off the ground, which makes it nice and level. There are storage lockers for food and each spot is separated a bit due to the natural elevation. Transportation details: Bus 263 to Sand, hiking to waterfall and back, bus X45 to get close to campsite, then a hike to camp.

Transportation details: We will take the X45 bus south to western entrance to the national park. From there, we will take another bus to Mitteltal. This is a lovely small town where we can get some lunch, get any supplies you might need, and then we will hike to our final camping spot.

Depending on availability we will either have Camp Bösellbach or Camp Gutellbach. Both are wonderful spots well into the forest. You'll get great views of the hills overlooking the town, as well as the river that runs through the forest. This might be one of my favorite spots of the Black Forest so far. If you're up for it, you can either visit the nearby waterfall (Sankenbachwasserfälle) or the viewing platform (Aussichtsplattform Ellbachseeblick).

For our last day of hiking, we will head into the town of Freudenstadt. By this point you'll have put your steps in, but won't want to say goodbye to the forest. You'll be able to enjoy the last few hours of the forest. In Freudenstadt there are some older Monastery ruins, although these are currently under repair so they are covered by scaffolding. Transportation details: Hiking!

We will make our way from Freudenstadt back to Heidelberg. Transportation details: S8 train from Freudenstadt to Karlsruhe, then the S8 train to Heidelberg. Both offer lovely views of the mountains and a chance to rest your legs. Depending on time we can visit the Karlsruhe Palace.