Kayak Trip Day 20: Vilshofen to Passau

Events from this post happened on Thursday the 27th of June, 2019. We paddled our magnificent inflatable canoe Zucchini from a town called Vilshofen an der Donau to Passau. Passau is the big city at the confluence of the Danube + Inn + Ilz rivers. It’s also the last major stop before the Danube flows into Austria. Our Stay in Vilshofen an der Donau Vilshofen an der Donau is an incredibly sweet little town. Its city center is well-maintained and the dining scene quite lively. On the evening of our arrival, we ate burgers in one of these hip burgerContinue reading

Kayak Trip Day 14: Vohburg to Kelheim and the Donaudurchbruch

This is a story about the events surrounding our canoe trip down the Danube between Vohburg and Kelheim. It happened on the 10th of June, 2019. We paddled about 30 kilometers between the two towns. Contents1 Our Stay in Vohburg2 Leaving Vohburg for Kelheim3 Paddling Past the Military Base4 The One-Hour Mark Challenge5 Overtaken By the Red Canoe6 The First Ferry and Camping Haderfleck7 Weltenburg – the Last Stop Before Kelheim8 The Donaudurchbruch9 Paddling on to Kelheim10 Arriving in Kelheim11 The Naming Ceremony12 Good Read? Please Share! Our Stay in Vohburg We stayed in the ’boutique hotel’ Zur Post forContinue reading

Kayak Trip Day 13: Ingolstadt to Vohburg

Events chronicled in this story happened on the 8th of June, 2019. Jonas and I paddled our inflatable canoe from Ingolstadt to Vohburg, 16.5km away. It was our 13th paddle day on the river Danube. Ingolstadt is a special place because that’s where the TID (Tour International Danubien) starts. That’s the people who paddle the Danube as a tour group. Five Nights in an Airbnb in Ingolstadt We took a break. For five nights after our arrival from Neuburg an der Donau, we slept, cooked for ourselves, and worked at a very pleasant Airbnb in Ingolstadt’s suburbia. We’d booked aContinue reading

Kayak Trip Day 12: Neuburg an der Donau to Ingolstadt

Events chronicled in this story happened on Monday the 3rd of June, 2019. We paddled our inflatable canoe from a village called Neuburg an der Donau to the big regional city Ingolstadt. It was a distance of about 18 kilometers. Packing Up in Neuberg an der Donau We both slept alright in our tent on the campground in Neuburg an der Donau. Getting up was very difficult though, because we woke up first at 6:00 and considered it too early, and then again at 7:15 when it got too hot in the tent. Edeka opened at 7:00, and we’d alreadyContinue reading

Kayak Trip Day 10: Dillingen an der Donau to Donauwörth

These events happened on Friday the 31st of May, 2019. We paddled our inflatable canoe from our riverside campsite in Dillingen an der Donau to Donauwörth, a distance of 28 kilometers. This was the first time we paddled this far and the first time we paddled two days in a row. If you want to know more about what this trip is about and why we’re doing it, I suggest starting here in Donaueschingen. Packing Up Our Camping Gear We woke up quite early at 7:00 in our beautiful tent. Soon after, we started our day of packing our campingContinue reading

Kayak Trip Day 6: Munderkingen to Dettingen

Events narrated in this story happened on Wednesday 22nd of May, 2019. We paddled our inflatable kayak from Munderkingen to Dettingen in Baden-Württemberg in South Germany. This was only a trip of 8.9 kilometers. We are paddling a stretch of the Danube river this year. If you want more information on our trip, you can read about the idea aka ‘Day Zero’, or read previous entries of our paddle days. Contents1 Booking Accommodation for The Days Ahead2 The Forecast3 Leaving Munderkingen for Dettingen4 Testing Our Abilities5 The Rottenacker Wehr6 Landing at Nettle Harbor7 Fighting the Urge to Scratch8 A LongContinue reading

Kayak Trip Day 5: Sigmaringen to Mengen + Munderkingen

This story is about us when paddling our inflatable canoe from Sigmaringen to Mengen on the 20th of May, 2019. The total distance was 16.1 kilometers. Our original plan was to kayak to Hundersingen, some 4.8 kilometers after Mengen – a total distance of 20.9 kilometers – followed by a train ride to Munderkingen. We had a permit to go from Sigmaringen to Hundersingen, after which the river becomes a natural protected area until Munderkingen. Click here for information on how to get a permit to paddle this stretch of the Danube. Contents1 The Second Permit2 Leaving the Holiday HomeContinue reading

Springtime in Uruguay! (Laguna Merín)

My 90 days are almost up, but dude, I’ve had a good time in Uruguay! What’s all this excitement about? Probably the not knowing what to expect and the fact that this hemisphere of the earth would slowly, but surely warm up in the course of a few months come spring. Near the end of my stay I can finally say: Toss your coat and take off your long pants, because springtime has FINALLY come to Uruguay! Uruguay Trip Summary I did a little tour of the country as you can see from my route map. It gave me the time to explore theContinue reading

Hitchhiking Anniversary: 4 Years a Hitchhiker!

Today is my hitchhiking anniversary: it’s been four years since I first put up my thumb to stop a car! I’m applauding Facebook for its ‘memories’ feature that brings up gems like this photo of me catching my first ever ride. I don’t want to sound dramatic, but the event right here in this photo has proven to be quite the life-changing moment. What happened that day four years ago? I guess I’ve never really talked about this on the blog. It may be good to type this up another time. Long story short: I was an exchange student inContinue reading