Aubure

27 June 2015:  Today's hike was excellent.  The trail climbed gradually from Thannenkirch, through pine forests, to a high point crowned by the ruins of the Château de Haut-Ribeaupierre.  The trail then descended steeply to Ribeauvillé, passing the Château de Saint-Ulrich and the Château de Guirsberg, each of which is perched dramatically – indeed, implausibly – on rocks above the valley.  One marvels at the human and material resources – extracted primarily from the peasantry – that were required to build and maintain those castles!

Ribeauvillé was a good place for a coffee break.  The café was so pleasant – with a shaded terrace, from which smokers were surprisingly absent, and a friendly owner – that we extended the break to include our picnic lunch.  

We then set off on the long, gradual climb up to the Koenigsstuhl (a total of about 650 vertical meters from Ribeauvillé).  The trail was excellent, apart from one section where a broad logging road had obliterated the trail.  Along the way, we met a French couple who are hiking the GR5.  They started at Wissembourg and followed the GR53 to its junction with the GR5 north of Schirmeck.  They, too, are hiking to the Mediterranean.  They were carrying camping gear and appeared to be very heavily loaded.  That reminded us of our hike on the GR5 in 1989...

The final section of today's hike was a long, gradual descent from the Koenigsstuhl to Aubure.  The trail was broad and smooth, apart from an interesting section where one clambers over large boulders.  Arriving in Aubure, we were pleased to settle into the comfort and warm hospitality of our chambres d'hôtes!

There will be a short delay in posting this entry on my blog.  Aubure is a fairly isolated village.  The weak mobile telephone network here cannot handle data transfer, and our chambres d'hôtes does not have internet.  I'll prepare the post in the comfort of our cosy room here and post it later.

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The church in Thannenkirch:

Carroll marche toujours avec élan!

A medieval garden in Thannenkirch:

An easy forest trail:

The ruins of the Château de Haut-Ribeaupierre:

The ruins of the Château de Saint-Ulrich:

Views of Ribeauvillé:

The ruins of the Château de Guirsberg;

Ribeauvillé:

The trail leading up to the Koenigsstuhl:

The one bad part of the trail, several hundred meters long, where a logging road has been built:

Carroll surveys his realm from the Koenigsstuhl:

Perhaps it should be called the Koenigensstuhl!

Big stone steps on the descent from the Koenigsstuhl:

Aubure, first visited by Carroll in 1980.  We camped in Aubure in 1989, but unfortunately the campground no longer exists.  The town used to support two bakeries, but they, too, have closed.  There is just a little shop with a dépôt de pain (a place where bread made elsewhere is delivered). 

The Ferme Lossow, our chambres d'hôtes in Aubure:

Our friendly hostess: