Black Forest Boondoggle?

The Black Forest has long been on my bucket list. Contrary to popular (non-German) belief, however, it’s not that close to Munich or other “major” German cities. So, for me it was relegated to a “when I have a spare weekend” status.

Why the Black Forest? Well, for me it's the idea of seeing a dense, creepy forest in the country so famous for fairy tales. A forest that got its name either from the tall dark pine trees themselves or the shadowy realm created by them and their accompanying fir and spruce trees.

The forest itself is a 160 x 50 km area that’s the origin of the Danube river (and the cake!). Today, of course, it's not the sylvan spread it was before so much of it was clear-cut. But with that kind of harvesting a rarity these days, the silviculture first explored in the 1800s means conservation efforts and timber needs are more closely aligned.

I decided to do an early spring trip when the small towns along the Black Forest Train route were less likely to be overrun with other tourists. And because the Black Forest is also the home of the cuckoo clock, and there’s a German Clock Route similar to the idea of the Fairy Tale Route, I thought I’d also try to squeeze in a last-minute cuckoo sight or two.

Call it overly ambitious and under ambitious at the same time.

The first leg of my trip was a FlixBus ride from Munich to Villingen. I’d read about the most scenic parts of the train ride and thought I’d be best served to start in the south, take the train north, and stay in the highly recommended scenic town of Gengenbach.

Mistake number one was not realizing that the FlixBus stop was not in the middle of town, but on one side of the dual township of Villingen-Schwenningen. The bus let us out in Schwenningen and, of course, the Black Forest train departed from Villingen. Once an hour.

The buses across town were also not so frequent, so I began a mad speed-walk across the two cities to get to the train. About 45 minutes into my insane march I realized I would have to run to make the train. 

Thankfully I had paused to assess my progress at a bus stop, and before I had to embarrass myself by breaking into a trot, a bus appeared and I made it to the station with minutes to spare.

Mistake number two. I took the train to Hornberg, mistakenly thinking it was one of the towns highlighted in the Cuckoo Clock Route. Adorable town nestled in the forest, with a stream and a castle ruin overlooking everything? Check. 

Hornberg Shooting Trail markers

But it was 2:30 pm on a Saturday afternoon and everything was closed, with no signs of cuckoos anywhere. Instead, Hornberg had a “shooting trail” you could follow. Hard pass. 

What I DID find in Hornberg was
entirely unexpected--a giant sequoia!

I had planned to spend a couple of hours in town casually exploring the sights. Instead, I did a quick sweep and hurried back up the hill to the station to catch the next hourly train.

Mistake number three. When I first got off the train in Hornberg I noticed I’d lost my Internet and phone service. I’m not sure why I thought they would re-emerge once I got down into the town, but it meant that when I got back up to the station, I had no access to a schedule or an online ticket.

Praising a still-papered society, I found the printed schedule at the platform and a ticket machine. But once I was on the train (still no service in that part of the woods) I remembered I needed to make a train transfer, but had no idea where or when. 

Having studied the map I had some thoughts on a course I could improvise to get me where I needed to go. Luckily I picked up phone service again just in time to avoid an unfortunate series of detours!

If you look through the window
you'll see a house with solar
panels. There were A LOT of
these along my train route.
So much for the
impenetrable forest idea!

Building decoration in Gengenbach

Gengenbach was a welcome respite from disappointment. It was just as cute as reported, full of Fachwerk houses and a lovely town hall that becomes a large advent calendar at Christmastime. 

(OK, one disappointment not to be there at the right time of year to see that.) 

The main street and square in Gengenbach

I walked around snapping pictures before checking into my room, then wandered out again for a few more pictures and food before collapsing for the evening. On Sunday I took advantage of the early-morning sun and quiet to walk the town again and relax before breakfast and the multi-hop train ride back to Munich.

Another tribute to the sun: hillside vineyards in Gengenbach

I would love to go back to the Black Forest someday, but would do a guided tour that involved driving through the heart of the forest and hitting the highlights of the towns along the way when they’re open. 

(I’ve discovered on other trips that in many small towns the stores and some attractions close around 1 or 2 pm on Saturdays, so weekday touristing is a better bet.)

That’s not to say it was not a good experience. Any time spent seeing new scenery and exploring new towns is time well spent in my book. 

But my expectations and my experience didn’t quite meet, which I guess was a good reminder of why I usually plan ahead, and a lesson in balancing the idealized with the truth of reality.