Ouren to Obereisenbach: Day 125

A longer, more strenuous day than I expected climbing up and down the steep, wooded side of the Our River valley.

Today and tomorrow I am following the valley of the Our River. With steep, wooded sides the valley wanders this way and that. Probably an incised meander created when the land rose, or the sea level fell, allowing the serpentine river to cut down into the landscape. At the base of the valley the modern Our has created flat meadows of grass within its bends, one of which houses my campsite for the night.

I delayed my start this morning to wait for the bread delivery so that I could enjoy two croissants for breakfast, no coffee as the on-site brasserie is closed on Mondays and there are no facilities in the village.

First stop today was at the point where Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg meet. There was a large grey stone there commemorating signing the Treaty of Rome, which was the start of what is now the European Union. An information board beside it was a little out of date, still showing Britain as a member. A little beyond a strange, rectangular, rusted metal structure of crossing wires that you could climb inside was part of some art project. 

Once in Luxembourg the red and white waymarks disappeared, replaced, I guessed, by yellow circles and an occasional E2 sign. Towards the end of the day the E3 joined the E2, coming in from the west where it starts (or more likely ends) in Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Frequent scallop waymarks also indicated I was on the Way of St James also known as the Camino de Santiago. 

By quiet roads, forest tracks and paths, the E2 climbs up and down the valley sides taxing the muscles as you are led through deciduous and coniferous woodland. Rock outcrops form one side of the trail in many places. Sometimes the slope is so steep the trail is cut into the rock. Sadly the trees get in the way of good views. At the top of my final, exhausting climb of the day railings had been constructed around what was once a place to view the valley, but since then the trees have grown hiding whatever beauty lay beyond. In one area trees had fallen across the path making the going particularly difficult. 

I had been hoping for a coffee at Dasbourg-Pont, but today is Monday and the café is only open Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This was also true of the café at my campsite tonight and seems a general trend now we are no longer in the "High Season" for tourists. There was a shop by the Petrol Station at Dasbourg-Pont so I bought a Coke and ice cream there. Fearing (correctly) the restaurant at my campsite would be closed tonight I would have bought some food but most of the shop seemed to be devoted to selling coffee and sparkling wine. The Our River is the border between Luxembourg and Germany, so one assumes Germans cross the bridge at Dasbourg-Pont to stock up on items which are cheaper in Luxembourg. There are many benches on the paths in Luxembourg but by the Petrol Station there were none, so I sat on the ground in the car park to enjoy my purchases feeling slightly pissed off. Two kilometres of walking beside a busy road followed before the trail again headed off up into the woods again.

I was tired on reaching my campsite and annoyed that the distance today was greater than given in the guidebook. However I then realised that the guidebook had ended the stage at an earlier campsite a few kilometres up the road. As tomorrow's stage is described as especially challenging it is perhaps just as well that I completed extra distance today.

Rare view down the valley.

Path along valley side.

Our River.