Late summer hiking in the Austrian Alps<\/p>\n
Haldensee is a clear, sparkling cold lake located at the bottom of the Tannheimer Tal valley in the Austrian Alps (about 90 miles south-west of Munich). We visited last year, just when summer was on its way out, and it was too cold to skinny-dip in the lake (unless you were very brave). Nonetheless, if you\u2019re a hiker, a ski lift takes you up into the Allg\u00e4u Alps where you can walk through dense forest to Bad Kissinger H\u00fctte<\/a> serving refreshing apfelschorle, warming soups and seasonal bakes to refuel for the journey downhill. When going down, we were accompanied by tinkling cattle, ambling along the mountain-side springs, which made the experience so much more memorable. Mountain tracks of Lake Garda, ItalyMountain bikers on the Strada del Ponale at Lake Garda. Photograph: Image Professionals \/Alamy<\/p>\n Northern Lake Garda, where the mountains tower above the lake, is one huge adventure playground: walking, cycling, climbing, boat trips and all manner of watersports on the lake. There are castles, waterfalls and valley cycle trails. The old Ponale<\/a> mountain road might be the pick for cycling (best on ebike) and walking. It winds through tunnels and clings to the rock with spectacular views over the lake. At Ponale Alto<\/a> enjoy a hearty pasta dish washed down with a local beer or wine, before returning downhill all the way. ProfileReaders’ tips: send a tip for a chance to win a \u00a3200 voucher for a Coolstays breakShow<\/p>\n Guardian Travel readers’ tips<\/p>\n Every week we ask our readers for recommendations from their travels. A selection of tips will be featured online and may appear in print. To enter the latest competition visit the readers’ tips homepage<\/a><\/p>\n –<\/p>\n Thank you for your feedback.<\/p>\n Swiss bliss near Mont BlancThere are loads of great walking choices from La Fouly just to the east of the Mont Blanc massif. Photograph: Daniel<\/p>\n Skip the crowds of Chamonix and spend a week at La Fouly<\/a>, in south-west Switzerland. Some walking routes are busy (it is a hub for the famous Tour du Mont Blanc walk) but there are plenty of walks to choose from, many of which are not on the main trail. Walk to the Lacs de Fen\u00eatre<\/a>, where you can hear the gurgling burps of rock ptarmigans at first light, and the shrieks of marmots as you descend back down into the valley. We camped by cool, fast-flowing rivers at Camping des Glaciers<\/a> in La Fouly. Meadows and cowbells in SloveniaThe Logar valley in Slovenia. Photograph: Aliaksandr Mazurkevich\/Alamy<\/p>\n The loudest sound in Slovenia\u2019s Logar Valley<\/a> is usually a cowbell. A narrow road runs through flower-filled meadows to the foot of the Kamnik-Savinja Alps, but it\u2019s best explored on foot or by bike, stopping at the little farms that sell homemade cheese and apple juice. Follow the easy trail to the 90-metre Rinka waterfall<\/a>, then linger over lunch at one of the mountain inns to enjoy the view. I stayed overnight in a family-run guesthouse, and by early evening the day visitors had gone, leaving the valley almost silent except for swallows and grazing cattle. Dragonflies and lilies on Italy\u2019s secret lakeLago di Monate is north-west of Milan. Photograph: Panther Media Global\/Alamy<\/p>\n The spring-fed Lago di Monate, between the much larger lakes of Maggiore and di Varese, has possibly the freshest swimming water in Italy, chiefly because of its longstanding ban on motorboats. You can hire paddleboards to cross the calm surface to vast lily beds, blooming in summer and alive with dragonflies. The grassy beach with sunbeds and umbrellas at Il Coppale<\/a> is very reasonable with evening meal (fresh fish, naturally) on their terrace at about \u20ac25 with a view over the lake to the Alps. Alpine ambience in BavariaL\u00f6densee in Upper Bavaria. Photograph: Image Professionals \/Alamy<\/p>\n Looking for a reasonable budget autumnal trip, a search on the usual sites led us to Bavaria, and the outdoorsy town of Ruhpolding. Alpine atmosphere was immediately delivered, with a charming unpretentious ambience. There is a really impressive waterpark and cool blue lakes, such as L\u00f6densee and Weitsee. Hikes through classical Alpine scenery took us to an alm, a mountain refuge in high meadows where local milk and beer was served with platters of meat and cheese. A little further away the huge Chiemsee gave us a day at the beach. A stop in Munich on the way back allowed us to visit the excellent BMW museum, part of which is free. The town of Foix in the foothills of the Pyrenees. Photograph: Fred P\/Alamy<\/p>\n Cycling the Velosud<\/a> this summer was the perfect trip to the mountains without having to cycle up or down them. We spent two weeks leisurely following the signposted route in the foothills of the Pyrenees, often alongside rivers, with mountain views every day. It\u2019s all either traffic-free or on very quiet roads, and passes by spa towns such as Salies-du-Salat, the beautiful Foix and Mirepoix, and lovely, low-key but well equipped campsites (always with swimming pool, aperitif and morning croissants). A cross-border trek on the Camino Franc\u00e9sA pilgrims\u2019 shrine on the Way of St James near Roncesvalles. Photograph: J Meyers Foreman\/Alamy<\/p>\n I\u2019ve walked close to 2,000km of the Camino de Santiago, traversing Spain from the Pyrenees to the Galician coast and following the crashing waves of the Atlantic Portuguese coast in northern Portugal. One of the most stunning stretches of the Camino Franc\u00e9s (part of the Camino de Santiago) takes you from the French Pyrenean town of St-Jean-Pied-de-Port to the Spanish village of Roncesvalles. It\u2019s a very tough climb, but it\u2019s well worth the effort. In the early morning mist, as you approach the border with Spain, the panoramic views from above the cloud line will take your breath away. A truly spectacular experience. Tuscany\u2019s wild sideThe Alpi Apuane are in the far north of Tuscany, inland from La Spezia, Liguria. Photograph: Alamy<\/p>\n It\u2019s amazing that the Alpi Apuane are not better known. This raw, jagged cluster of marble peaks forms a dramatic backdrop to the bucket-and-spade beaches of northern Tuscany. These mountains are laced with challenging trails, including the multi-day Via Vandelli<\/a>, linking Modena to the coast. The valleys shelter quiet, refreshing streams and half-forgotten villages. Above the treeline, the hiker is rewarded with expansive views of the mountains, the sea, and the surreal marble quarries hewn from the mountainsides. This is the wild side of Tuscany. Winning tip: The Vosges mountains by trainThe Vosges\u2019 Wormsa valley, just west of Colmar, is brilliant walking country. Photograph: Juergen Feuerer\/Alamy<\/p>\n The Vosges mountains in eastern France are made up of forest-covered rounded peaks called ballons<\/a>, and are accessible by train. The line between Colmar and Metzeral provides easy access into the Wormsa valley, where forest paths climb past streams to the peaceful Lac du Fischboedle, surrounded by trees. From there you can climb the third highest mountain in the Vosges, Hohneck (1,363 metres), for sweeping views towards the Alps. The food in the region is delicious, especially tarte flamb\u00e9e (flammekueche<\/a>), a traditional thin flatbread topped with creme fraiche, onions and bacon.
Kovida<\/p>\n
Dave Thomas<\/p>\n
Daniel<\/p>\n
Susanna C<\/p>\n
Tim Leadbetter<\/p>\n
Brian Lowry<\/p>\n
Rowan<\/p>\n
Stephen Taylor<\/p>\n
Robert<\/p>\n
Hannah<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Late summer hiking in the Austrian Alps Haldensee is a clear, sparkling cold lake located at the bottom…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":115333,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[16],"tags":[50],"class_list":["post-115332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-alps","tag-alps"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ch\/117092427127920437","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115332"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115332\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/115333"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}