Today began at 7am sharp - one hour earlier than usual. It's not like it was my choice or anything. The town church's 18th century clock struck like a bowling ball from the hand of a WTBA champion; over and over. I have long said that I can sleep through anything; loud noises, hot temperatures, cold temperatures, with the lights on, but when a church bell rings for two solid minutes, well that's the limit.Breakfast at this hotel was the biggest buffet I had ever seen. The amount of options was overwhelming. I enjoyed smoked salmon; shrimp; tomatoes, cukes and peppers, assorted cheeses; cereal; yogurt; a small baguette; a boiled egg; toast; a pot of earl grey tea and a fruit smoothie, all while struggling through the local newspaper.
The plan for today was totally reliant on the weather. Today was to be partly sunny/partly rainy. Tomorrow was to be totally sunny. When I re-checked the weather report, both days showed part sun/part rain. As such, I took my chances by venturing off to the Saxon-Switzerland National Park. Don't be confused by the title. I am NOT in Switzerland. The founders felt that the Park reminded them of Switzerland so they used that in the title. Saxon is the Anglicized name for the State/Region in which most of the Park is located.
I began my day-trip with an electric tram up the moutain. The 30-minute journey saved me a 2.5 hour hike. The ride was quite enjoyable and the towns we passed along the way were quite picturesque. It wasn't until two people who had no clue what deordorant is, stood next to me (which was around the same time that a nearby mom changed her child's poopy diaper) that I was thinking about walking the rest of the way. It wasn't long after that we were at the top and I wasn't three minutes at the top when the rain began. I had a few options. Wait it out; take the tram back to the bottom; grab a beer; I forget what the rest of the options were. The (cheap) beer went down too quickly and probably wasn't the best idea before a 3-4 hour hike...
The rain stopped while I walked the first leg of the hike. My destination was a geologic formation called "Cow's" something or other, which was used during the war to provide shelter for the area's cows??? From a quick on-site survey, I gathered that perhaps less than 3% of those who make it to this point continue any further. My goal was to complete the 10 km trek in less time than I was told it would take, but with three fairly lengthy breaks to seek cover from the pouring rain, I finished the hike with only a few minutes to spare. As much as I have hated rain on this trip, I was psyched by it at one point atop the summit. The sky was clear and sunny, yet rain was dripping very modestly. Not only was it beautiful, I was texting back and forth to Canada which kinda blew my mind. I was literally in the middle of nowhere yet my phone worked and I could communicate in real time to someone over 4,000 miles away. Suddenly, the air became foggy and it was at that point that I realised I was actually IN a cloud. I had 15 seconds to find a cave to hang out in. It took me ten. My boy scout skills came in handy once again.
I became completely bored about 2.5 hours into the walk. The trail was reasonably well-marked but there were a few questionable moments. I found myself at a four-way crossing with only a faded painting on a tree of a white rectangle with a red square inside to lead my way. Since I am back in my hotel writing this entry, you need not worry about me getting lost in the forest forever, I obviously made the right choice.
I reached the end of the hike just in time to catch the boat back up the river to Bad Schandau. Too tired to eat properly, I snarfed down a few sandwiches, some peanuts and a beer before hitting the steam room to give my legs a bit of therapy.
I am so tired that I could sleep for a week, but I know I only have until 7am so I'd better get to it.
