Vienna City Hike #3 – Hameau

panning with the camera

Yay!  It feels great! Not only did I get out on Saturday morning for a 3.5+ hour hike after spending so much time crossed-legged on the floor painting this week, I’m back on track in terms of doing Vienna’s Hiking Paths in order.  That same part of my brain that likes to finish one book or project before starting another feels much better now that I’ve done City Hike #3 – Hameau. If you’ll remember, I had skipped it to do the much shorter Hike #4 on a cold day when I had very little energy.  Then again, I haven’t done 1A, right next to Hike 1 because I’m saving it for when the grapes are growing again. Somehow, my brain has no issues with that.

This hike was truly blissful!  I left at 7:30am after making a huge batch of organic curry soup (cauliflower, butternut squash, brown rice, lentils, celery, carrot, spinach, ginger, and garlic. I’m glad to report it’s a good batch – thank goodness because I have enough for the whole week!).  I’m an early bird, so I don’t mind leaving right after sunup – it simply meant no hiking buddies like when I did Hike 2.  I enjoy my own company, though, so I didn’t mind that either. It was worth it so I could take advantage of the warm sunny weather (3-9 degrees during my hike) and still get 7.5 hours in at school with the rest of my class.  The forecast was rain for Sunday.

dancing with the camera

Highlights:

• The starting point to all these paths is in the city, accessible by public transportation.  In addition to seeing all sorts of gorgeous buildings on my way to the trail heads, I get to walk through very different neighbourhoods than mine before entering nature. For this hike, I took the U6 subway to Alser Strasse and then tram 43 to the end stop at Neuwaldegg (17th district).
  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

• These trails are all well marked – you just have to keep your head up, but out of the clouds, so as not to miss a sign and end up on one of the hundreds of intersecting trails that go who knows where.  I’m glad to report that I didn’t have to do any backtracking this time. The only tricky part was finding the first sign from the tram station – if you don’t have a smart phone with Internet access, it’s a good idea to write down the list of landmarks so you can ask someone. One sign informed me that I was about to enter Black Mountain Park (Schwarzenbergpark) –  part of the Vienna Woods Biosphere Reserve recognized by UNESCO in 2005.  Very promising!
  
  

  

  

  
• For the first hour, you’re mostly walking on sidewalks and paved trails. Then you hit the dirt paths – where you can connect more directly with nature and encounter less people.  I like the variety and have felt completely safe on all these trails.  That’s quite the blessing!
  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
• I certainly didn’t need my headphones – the song of the birds, the wind, and sheep made an amazing soundtrack to gorgeous sights and colours – even in the winter.  Have you seen the movie “August Rush“? It’s my favourite and celebrates this kind of music.
  
  

  

  original – in camera backlit wonder

  

  

  

  in-camera motion

  

  

  

  

  

  mirrored

  
• I so enjoy finding creatures and figures – in tree trunks, roots, and sometimes while playing in Photoshop afterwards.
  
  

  mirrored image – forest spirits

  

  

  

  
• The namesake for this trail is Hameau, a rain shelter with a history (badly translated by Google, but decipherable).  I reached it at the top of the hill at about 10am and enjoyed my organic snack from Denn’s: lactose-free yoghurt carrot cheese; wheat free bun, golden carrot. It kept me going until my late lunch at Vapiano’s: pizza – not lactose or gluten free, but so good once in a while.
  
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  She wasn’t a young woman!

  

The Lowlight:

This wasn’t a big deal at all, but I nearly wiped out twice near the end of the trail where there had recently been some tree cutting – the tracks of the heavy machinery in the mud and all the branches made it a bit more challenging to walk – not a huge inconvenience and only for about 15 minutes.  I’m actually more grateful that the rest of the trail wasn’t as muddy – it’s been an unusually dry and warm winter I’m told.

I made it to school by 12pm, even before the teacher, and had a very productive day working on my painting.  As for today, it’s a home day.  A bit of writing and photo editing, a bit of studying, a couple of loads of laundry, a movie or two, and perhaps more cooking.  Life is good indeed!