Bayerischer Wald can be just as hard to get to than it is to pronounce.
For we folk who are only fluent in English there is a translation just for us: the Bavarian Forest. But it any language, it is still hard to get to.
Nonetheless, we were determined to get there.
Departing from Munich, reaching our destination required three trains to Grafenau before taking a taxi to the nearby and stunningly beautiful little village called Neuschönau, nestled near the forest and not too far from the border with Czechia.
Catching connecting trains in Germany presents a challenge we Australians are not too familiar with: the trains run on time.
Our first connecting train gave us a whole two minutes to scamper from one platform to the one over the other side. The second connecting train was far more generous, giving us a whole four minutes.
We discovered two things about trains in Germany: 1) If the timetable says the train is due in at, say, 10:26am then it arrives at 10:26am and not a minute earlier or a minute later, and 2) If the timetable says the train is due to depart at 10:28am, then it departs at 10:28am on the dot.
I could add a third: travel lightly. It’s rather awkward running as fast as you can to opposing platforms with a suitcase that weighs roughly the same as a small motor car, and then to find that the connecting train has nowhere for you to place it.
But all the running, huffing and puffing is worth it when you finally arrive at your hotel, which in our case was a drop-dead gorgeous old villa with million-dollar views from our room.
Mine host, Manuel, was a friendly enough sort of chap, though he gave me another reason to travel lightly; mumbling at me over the weight of our suitcases which he’d volunteered – with regrets – to carry up the stairs for me.
But we were in Neuschönau, and it was time to explore.
We didn’t get far. Liz’s Restaurant and Café, about a ten-minute walk from our hotel, beckoned us. Liz – a lovely English lady originally from the Channel Islands – married a German and returned with him to Neuschönau, in her words; “a lifetime ago”.
For Carol and I, who know only a handful of German words Liz was soon our go-to person while staying in the village. (Which was handy, as her little restaurant had food to die for. Her square chips alone are worth travelling to Germany for.)
As an aside, Liz mentioned that Carol and I were only the second lot of Australians to visit her little restaurant. A young couple from Melbourne were there six months earlier. It gave us the hint that Neuschönau was well off the beaten track when it came to tourists. (Away from the bustling crowds is worthy of a koala stamp.)
But we were only there for one reason: to visit Bayerischer Wald.
Manuel, bless him, gave us two return trip bus passes to the forest, so after a 15-minute walk to the bust stop our adventure was soon to begin. After a very short trip the bus driver gave us a nod that said; “We’re here”. (Little had we realised that the forest was within walking distance from the village.)
Alighting our bus, to our left was a tree-top walk, on the right, the forest itself. We went left, enticed by a massive tower that rose above the forest.
We needed a good hour to complete the tree-top and tower walk.
With the tree-top walk done a dusted, we headed to the forest, unaware that we were about to embark on one of the most exhilarating days imaginable. Amazing wildlife, breathtaking scenery – the forest had it all.
It didn’t take long to meet one of its inhabitants: a startled red squirrel, who upon seeing me, sprinted off at roughly 750ks an hour. I kid you not.
The forest walk took us roughly six hours. If we could have pressed on for an extra hour we would have been rewarded with encounters with elk and boars, but the legs said “no”.
Apart from the wildlife we’d captured on film, we also encountered a wolf, some martens and beavers (who were making their home in readiness for Winter). The animals, unfortunately, were too quick for our cameras. The wolf, however, was just plain stubborn: refusing to come out from behind the bush were first spotted.
Finishing the day at Liz’s – and stories of our adventure – we vowed that we’d return if ever the opportunity would present itself.
”If ever you do,” said Liz, “promise me you’ll catch a train to Passau just north of here. It’s too beautiful not to see, and then you can catch a taxi to Neuschönau. Or you could have just taken a bus from Munich to here.”
What! There’s an easy way to get to Neuschönau! Now you tell us!
Yeah, but nah. The hard way was fun.
Carol and I visited Bayerischer Wald in September 2018. To this day, we haven’t forgotten a second of it.
(More photos here of the magical forest).
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