Day 04: From Wessobrunn to Schongau

Date	Dec 6th, 2022
Route map	Route trace
Today's distance:	20 miles
Total This Camino:	70 miles
Total 2022 Caminos:	394 miles
Total All Caminos:	1690 miles
Lodging:	Hotel Blaue Traube, Schongau @ $80
Total Lodging:	$ 290
Planes:	$810 Rochester -> Munich -> Rochester + $75 checked bag
Total Planes:	$ 885
Buses / Trains / Taxis:
Total Buses / Trains / Taxis:	$ 15
Food:	$ 25
Total Food:	$ 120

Meaningful Moment

Seeing the Bavarian Alps from high atop Hoherreissen while I'm sitting on a bench next to the Catholic Church built on this mountain top.

Random Thought of the Day

How could this day get any better!

How could this day get any worse?

On the Road / Notable memories

My stay at Uschi's albergue was so much better than any hotel. It had a Camino spirit . She was warm and gracious and charming, and I so appreciated the warmth. Not ripping on the various hotel staff that I've met, but she was different.

Around 8:00 a.m. I hiked into Wessobrunn to grab breakfast at the bakery shop. As I was taking my backpack off in front of the store, this man walked past me and wished me a Buen Camino. He saw the Camino shell on my backpack. He no sooner went in when another man stopped to ask me where was I going to and where did I come from as in country of origin.

It had that Camino feeling of people being interested in you.

Spent the morning walking through farmland and small villages and forests. It was pretty.

By noon I had a decision to make. I could either bypass the highest point on today's hike, a 300 ft rapid climb and descent, or I could actually do it. I decided to take the mountain on.

At the top, I visited a beautiful church on this mountaintop and I sat down to have lunch on a bench by the church, overlooking the snow capped Bavarian Alps. It was an unbelievably beautiful moment.

The descent down was tricky and I had to go slowly, so by the time I got to the bottom, I was running late as it was already 1:00 p.m.

So I kicked it into overdrive as I still had 8 mi to go or maybe 9 mi. I passed thru forests and farms, over asphalt and gravel and dirt and mud. Constantly looking down at my footfalls to make sure that I was steady, I managed in the middle of a forest to completely miss a turn. Having to backtrack added another mile to the day's hike.

While all this was going on, I still had not heard back from the lady at whose albergue where I wanted to spend the night. I tried a couple of other quick calls, but eventually no one got back to me.

It was now around 4:00 p.m. I had no place to sleep in Rottenbuch and was running out of options with still 4 mi to go.

Having just completed another steep and tricky descent on a slope headed down a riverbank, it was decision time. Press on to Rottenbuch and hope I find something, or completely abort the plan and try something new.

I aborted the plan. Using my booking apps, I found a place 4 miles in the opposite direction, well away from the Camino trail.

So that was my decision:

Stay on the trail or,

Leave the trail completely

It was about 4:00 p.m. and the sun goes down around 4:30 and it gets dark a little after 5:00. I certainly did not want to be hiking in the dark on a road.

Either way I had a problem.

So I finally decided to split from the trail and I booked a place, 4 miles to the north and in the wrong direction. Now I only had to get there before it got dark.

I made it and I needed a really long shower and I really needed to do my clothes and I really needed to take care of my feet which were aching something fierce.

My 16-mile day had just turned into a 20 mi hike.

My 7-hour day I just turned into a 9-hour day.

When I got into the room, I was spent and exhausted and tired and beaten down.

After resting, I felt better.

I went out around 8pm and there was a Christmas festival in the Town square. Lots of kiosks offering arts and crafts and food. I took a look at the half a meter bratwurst but decided it was too early in the night for that. So I ended up in a coffee shop where I had a latte and a super sweet piece of roll cake.

When I went back out again later that night, the festival had closed down. So I ended up ordering sushi from a Vietnamese restaurant in a German town. How international can I get?

	Haid bei Wessobrunn, a very very small hamlet.
	St Johannes church, Wessobrunn
	Breakfast at the local bakery
	Wessobrun
	St Leonard church, Forst
	St Leonard church
	"Storm and snow is in the roof area of the church, be careful."
	Schwarzlaich moor Black spawn bog
	While sitting on a bench outside the pilgrimage church eating lunch, I had this magnificent view of the Bavarian Alps.