Onward to Cyprus!

After battling the snow, ice, mud and injuries (caused by said challenges) through Hungary, I came to the realization that trying to traverse Serbia in the middle of Winter was a bit more than I could chew. My late start has caught up to me, which was not completely unexpected. I decided to stop at … Continue reading Onward to Cyprus!

Budapest to Putnok

I bought a new pair of shoes in Budapest, but decided not to use them because the weather had been so poor. The hills north of Budapest were quite slick and muddy, and the mud combined with the constant soaking and drying tends to be very hard on shoe fabrics. I didn’t want to ruin … Continue reading Budapest to Putnok

Nagyvazsony to Budapest

Following my first rest day in Hungary, I departed for what would be a difficult 8-day stretch into the capital of Budapest. All eight days would be relatively long, as I put my foot on the accelerator. The first day was quite dreary. It was gray and cold all day, and the long stretches of … Continue reading Nagyvazsony to Budapest

Kirchschlag in der Buckligen Welt to Nagyvazsony

Coming off a rest day, I left the hills of Austria and crossed the border into Hungary, marking the completion of the fifth country. It rained all day, which made the entrance a bit dreary. The border was just a small concrete marker in the forest about 4km from the town of Koszeg.  Koszeg was … Continue reading Kirchschlag in der Buckligen Welt to Nagyvazsony

Ebensee to Kirchschlag in der Buckligen Welt

It was a bit strange to part ways with Sabine in Ebensee. Even though we had only been walking together for a short time, I felt alone as I set off into the rain. The weather was really showing signs of an early winter, as it was snowing on the mountaintops and the temperatures were … Continue reading Ebensee to Kirchschlag in der Buckligen Welt

Marquartstein to Ebensee

Arriving in Marquartstein was a major milestone for me, as I was meeting my wife and seeing family there. Sabine was going to be walking with me for a while, and I was looking forward to the company. We ended up taking a few extra days off because everyone was ill. I was the only … Continue reading Marquartstein to Ebensee

Fussen to Marquartstein

I’m admittedly, woefully behind on my blog posts. I finished this segment in Marquartstein, where I was meeting my wife and her family. While spending time with my wife, I didn’t feel like writing and fell behind. Have made lots of progress since the last update, so I’ll start with this section and then update … Continue reading Fussen to Marquartstein

Brugg to Fussen

The last ten day stretch of walking was full of transitions. Brugg was the gateway to the less hilly and more populated end of Switzerland, which was a nice change after some cold, wet, windy and muddy days high above the lake-filled valleys below. The first day out of Brugg was highlighted by the dramatic … Continue reading Brugg to Fussen

Saint Cergue to Brugg

Apologies for the late post. I have been battling bad weather, injuries and migraines for the last few days, which affected my will to write. But, all good now. After taking a rest day in Saint Cergue (the first village in Switzerland) and ditching my old shoes, I started the next set of walking days. … Continue reading Saint Cergue to Brugg

Grenoble to Saint Cergue

After a errand-filled rest day in Grenoble, the climb out of the urban basin was rigorous and busy. There were a lot of people hiking this section, and there were quite a few people taking part in other outdoor activities. I saw trail runners, spelunkers, rock climbers, and paragliders in the entrance to the Chartreuse … Continue reading Grenoble to Saint Cergue

Dieulefit to Grenoble

After resting in Dieulefit, I had a 6-day stretch to Grenoble that was front-loaded, with some long days to start. The first of which was about 38km with a massive climb over the mountains. In the rolling hills before the climb, I came across the Church of Comps: This church is mentioned in historical texts … Continue reading Dieulefit to Grenoble

Saint Martin d’Ardeche to Dieulefit

Leaving the buzzing river town of Saint Martin d’Ardeche, I had a long day to Viviers on the banks of the Rhone River. Like the previous few days, the terrain was less than spectacular. The first 27km to the village of Saint Montan was again on boring dirt roads through the dry and shrubby hills … Continue reading Saint Martin d’Ardeche to Dieulefit

Villefort to Saint Martin d’Ardeche

Villefort to Les Vans was my last day in the Cevennes National Park, and while the park was amazing I was looking for a change. I had enough days of camping in a row, and I needed a break from the cold, rainy and windy weather. After following the GR6/7 and their variants (60/66/68/70/71/72) through … Continue reading Villefort to Saint Martin d’Ardeche

Le Vigan to Villefort

After the rest day in Le Vigan it was time to enter the Cevennes National Park area. The first task was to climb to the top of Mont Aigoual. A few kilometers out of Le Vigan was the pretty, creekside village of Aulas. With Le Vigan so close, Aulas was very quiet since everyone just … Continue reading Le Vigan to Villefort

Fagairolles to Le Vigan

After camping a few kilometers past Fagairolles, the first half of the day was spent making my way through a small valley to the village of Melagues. The way was not very exciting, but the village of Melagues was quite nice after the bland morning. The locals were gardening in the central vegetable gardens, and … Continue reading Fagairolles to Le Vigan

Carcassonne to Fagairolles

After a nice, but tourist dodging rest day in Carcassonne it was time to get back on the road. It took a while to get through the suburbs of Carcassonne, as the path followed the canal. I stopped for a few minutes to watch the boats go through the locks before continuing on through the … Continue reading Carcassonne to Fagairolles