Sunburnt at Murnau, Bavaria

The road back from the Murnau Moos with a clear view of the mountains.

My mother-in-law’s walking choice for the week was around a town called Murnau. It is embarrassing to admit but we got a mild sunburn while doing a hike there. We knew the weather would be good but we did not know that the walk would have barely any shade. Additionally, we did not know we were going to make a 15 km (about 9.3 miles) hike that day. 

It’s breath-taking at Mittenwald, Bavaria

View of the mountains behind Lautersee.

My mother-in law was surprised when she learned that I had never been to Mittenwald. It is a 90-minute drive (in good traffic) south of Munich but on weekends, this could stretch well over 2 hours. Mittenwald is a beautiful area close to the Alps and a popular escape destination for city dwellers to immerse in nature. It was also our pick for our weekly walking tour. 

A stroll around Thanning, Bavaria

The view across the lake at Thanning.

I have “disappeared” from blogging for a while but it is not because I have not been travelling. My last few trips have all been for work. Travelling for work and being kept indoors is far from being an adventure to blog about. I hope to write about some of these places but perhaps during another visit. Lately my adventures have stayed local and with spring upon us, walks once a week have been vital to the soul. This week’s selection was a tiny village south of Munich called Thanning.

A visit to Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon, Iceland

The mouth of the Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon.

We made Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon our first stop of the day. Unfortunately for us, it was a grey sky that morning. Getting there was a bit tricky. We found that road signs were lacking and had almost missed the turn into route 206. From route 1 (the main road around Iceland), the path to the canyon was a dirt road so the 4W drive we had was definitely necessary. While our stop at Fjaðrárgljúfur was a brief one, the canyon was worth the stop. It was beautiful!

Reykjadalur – the “Steam Valley”, Iceland

Reykjadalur: view of the valley from the hiking trail.

Reykjadalur was our last stop for the day. The Steam Valley is a well known walking trail that leads to a natural hot spring where many head to for taking a bath. The start of the trail is somewhat hidden behind the town Hveragerdi at the Hot River Cafe. Our plan had been to camp beside the hot spring for the night, however to do this, we had to carry all our camping gear and make the 3km hike. It took us probably over an hour to reach the hot spring, but it was well worth the effort.

Japan’s biggest Camphor tree, bamboo charcoal-baked chiffon cake and an abandoned mountain pass in Aira

In the middle of a bamboo forest in Aira.

We spent 3 nights in Kagoshima, the southern tip of the Kyushu island. While that sounds like a long time, I was glad we took this “rest” before moving on. But resting didn’t mean we were deterred from exploring the region. One of the areas we wanted to visit was the Aira district for the biggest and one of the oldest Camphor tree in Japan, Kamoh no Ohkusu (蒲生の大楠).

Walking through Torrent de Pareis, Mallorca

The mountains in the region of Port de Sa Calobra. Taken during our drive back from the walk.

Our walk through Torrent de Pareis was our third hike on Mallorca (Read about our first two hikes in Levant Nature Park). Situated in the north-western region of the island, the entire route starts from a town called Escorca and ends at the port in Sa Calobra (this website has more details).

Hiking in the Levant Nature Park, Mallorca

The coastal path that commences the Puig de Sa Tudosa route.

We made 3 walks in Mallorca of which 2 were done in the Nature Park of Levant, the North-east region of the island between the towns Betlem and Artà.

The Hohenschwangau castle and the Neuschwanstein castle

The Alpsee. Taken while walking down from Hohenschwangau castle.

As Walt Disney fans, being in Bavaria meant we had to visit the Neuschwanstein castle –  the inspiration behind the Sleeping Beauty castle and the Walt Disney castle logo. From Füssen, we made our way to the castles and despite the gloomy weather on our first day, the day of our visit was amazing!

Hiking across Yakushima: the Okabuhodo trail and the Kusugawa trail

Read about the 2nd day of the 3-day hike.

Or read about the 1st day of the 3-day hike.

The intense green from moss and trees along the Kusugawa trail! Simply spectacular!

We woke to the sound of movement from the other campers below us. Some of them had spent the night sleeping in big plastic bags…literally with plastic bags over their heads as well.