During my first ultralight trekking weekend a few years ago in the region around Wohldenberg, a sign for the Hildesheim-Harz-Weg caught my eye. Once I was back home, I looked up information about the trail. The research showed that the trail runs 57 kilometres from Hildesheim to Hahausen on the north-western edge of the Harz, across the foothills of the Harz. Along the way, it passes several lovely places in the region. So it was clear that this trail would go on my to-do list. This weekend was free of appointments, so after a long time I was finally able to put this plan into action.
Originally, I wanted to set off right away on Friday afternoon. Unfortunately, due to various complications, I only got going on Friday evening.
First, I took the train from my place to Hildesheim main station in order to walk to the starting point from there. Why I did not get off the train at Hildesheim-Ost and spare myself the first kilometres through the city, I could not explain to myself. Somehow, I was probably a bit unfocused when looking at the map.
Despite the improvable start, the trail made me want more from the very first kilometres. After barely 400 metres, a wonderful view of the night-lit Hildesheim opened up from the "Frying Pan" viewing platform. After covering just three kilometres on the trail that evening, I set up my camp and enjoyed the full moon. The temperatures were slightly above freezing during the night and it was snugly warm in my quilt. Thanks to the early bedtime, I was awake at sunrise in the morning and packed up my things. I wanted to walk a few metres first and then have breakfast in peace at the next best place to sit.
After I passed the Brockenblick, the trail showed itself from a wonderful side. The trail was a narrow path and there was not a single soul in sight as far as the eye could see.
This beautiful section ran from the Brockenblick to the Hildesheim Börde. From the Hildesheim Börde, the trail went under the A7 and from there onto a forest road that ran parallel to the motorway. I walked a good stretch further to escape the constant backdrop of noise from the passing cars and lorries. My stomach was already almost in my knees; after all, I had been on the go for several hours. When I realised that I would not find a quieter spot within the next half hour, I made myself comfortable on the next log and looked forward to my well-earned breakfast. There I sat, full of anticipation, on the log, eating my pre-packaged muesli with milk powder. After the first bite, however, I realised that the milk powder must have been past its expiry date. It simply tasted rancid.
Oh well, so the muesli stayed uneaten. For that day, there were still two chocolate muesli bars as snacks, which I allowed myself as a breakfast substitute. With the loud A7 in the background, "breakfasting" at this spot was not much fun. A little fortified, I continued to follow the "H" markings and found that, contrary to my GPS track, they soon led me back over the A7. The original route had apparently to be adjusted because the next bridge had been torn down a few years ago. From that moment on, I relied on the signage, and where there were no suitable markings, I chose the path that ran towards Derneburg. In Hersum, I could not believe my ears, because a historic steam locomotive was chugging through the Innerste valley.
The next kilometres led through the nature reserve "Middle Innerste Valley with Kanstein" up to Derneburg.
At the foot of this castle, I treated myself to my lunch. On the menu were miso noodles with cheese and sausage. The Chinese noodles alone would hardly have satisfied me; in combination, they were at least acceptable in taste and high in calories on the first day.
At that moment, I thought that I should cook properly on a trip again sometime, because in terms of taste, there is a world of difference between these minimalist freezer-bag meals and simple supermarket cooking. I think I will explore this topic in its own category in the near future.
There was a lot of trouble at the castle that day - crowds of people arrived by bus. All I could do was quicken my pace and disappear back into the forest behind Derneburg. This section was marked by quite a few metres of elevation, and I realised how practical it was to have my trekking poles with me again this time, because without them I certainly would not have managed it.
On Wohldenberg castle, there was a tower from which you could enjoy the view. Since I had been on the tower quite some time ago and still had the pictures in my head, I spared myself this detour. For someone who has not been there yet, it is a worthwhile detour! Shortly after Wohldenberg castle, I took another break.
It was just two o’clock in the afternoon and I had already covered more than twenty kilometres. Spurred on by this achievement, I allowed myself a short break as the weather changed from slightly cloudy to brilliant sunshine.
The next section led along a very appealing narrow path. In this section, no preventive tree pruning was carried out anymore. So there were not only broken branches, but also a fallen tree lying on the path. This gave me the impression of pure nature. At the same time, I was very glad that no hurricane was sweeping through the forest at that moment.
On this stage, I met the only hiker of the day. He had just come from the hunter’s lodge and told me how delighted he was with the great path. After a little chat, I continued towards the hunter’s lodge. I was already looking forward to an ice-cold cola. I also wanted to refill my water supplies there. When I arrived, I realised that this idea was not to be crowned with success. The hunter’s lodge was still under construction. And so my dream of an ice-cold cola burst like a soap bubble. The clock told me it was already 5 p.m. and the sun was beginning to set.
So I slowly kept my eyes open for a suitable place to sleep for the night near the Bodensteiner Klippen. The sun slowly disappeared behind the horizon and I was still looking for a reasonably level area to spend the night.
So I searched for a spot hour after hour until, just after seven, in the dark, I finally found a reasonably usable sleeping spot at the back of a rock. I quickly set up the tarp, the sleeping pad and the quilt and disappeared into bed to sleep well before "hiker midnight". During the night, the temperature dropped to -2°C at 90% humidity. I was really glad I had packed the thick quilt. In my three-season quilt, this would have become a bitterly cold night.
The next morning, I got up with the first rays of sun again and took down my camp. I walked a few kilometres to just before the village of Bodenstein, where I had breakfast in the sun on a bench at the forest edge and watched the hoar frost on the plants as it thawed.
From this section of forest onwards, the trail unfortunately only led up countless metres of elevation along hiking motorways. Slowly, I began to feel the 33 kilometres of the previous day in my legs. But I tirelessly approached the goal, the station in Hahausen. There, I finally wanted to buy the cola I had been longing for. Just before Hahausen, the Harz finally showed itself from its beautiful and imposing side. I had no idea how beautiful even the edge of the western Harz is.
At the station, I had to realise that a station with tracks in use does not mean that trains actually stop there. So I ordered a call taxi and began my journey back.
At home, I calmly drank a can of cola and was glad to have enjoyed the weekend so intensely.
