I took too many damn photos to squeeze into one article, so until I get better at selecting, this day will be split in two articles.
Intro
On the weekend of the 6th week of 2020 I had some small plans; I wanted to get some walking in on Saturday at the High Fens and a little visit to Aachen on Sunday to do some locality-specific shopping. Storm Ciara was predicted to hit that same weekend, in other words a great time to go hiking. Fortunately the storm wasn’t really forecast to hit until Sunday afternoon, so no need for a change of plan.
A few weeks ago I walked from Eupen (Belgium) to Monschau (Germany) in a more or less straight line across the Getzbach, keeping north of the Monschauer Strasse, which is a main road cutting through the nature reserve between those cities. This time I went less far east and kept south of the Monschauer Strasse to the Signal de Botrange, but somewhere along the way I took a wrong turn and …
Anyway.
Eupen
Starting position was again Eupen, the largest German-speaking city in Belgium.
Do you have any idea how hard it is to get a good shot of a squirrel that doesn’t want to sit still? It actually jumped from tree to tree but I wasn’t able to capture that, so this badly lit photo will have to do.
Some creative architecture. The house in the last of the following three photos is for sale by the way, hit me up if you want the real estate agent’s number :wink:.
From left to right, the flags of Eupen, the European Union, the German-speaking Community of Belgium, and Belgium.
Into the forest
I will be following the forest alongside the Hill river, the former natural border with Prussia. This is a region full of old border stones, such as this one.
Small dam
Came across a small dam with the most alluring foamy water, but sadly bathing was not permitted :sad:.
Further to the Hilltal
Hilltal, the Hill valley.
Bonus: a quick video.
Upcoming article: the second leg of the hike, down south from the Hilltal to the Signal de Botrange.