Of the blue wonder and a lost shoe on the Frankensteigla

What do the color blue, an old shoe, Hansel and Gretel have in common?

Exactly, I will tell you about them today.

High above Wirsberg on the so-called Frankensteigla we are on our way today. Our adventure starts at a seemingly normal junction at the top of the mountain, still in the forest, just before the village of Neufang.

'Sounds good, maybe I can catch something new to play with there,' I think and wait patiently until Mrs. Kati has everything sorted out.

I can wait much better now and off we go - we follow the signposted blue bars on a white background or the Frankensteigla marker.

After taking a deep breath of the forest once and getting a few interesting scent trails in my nose, we are greeted by a cheerful monk right away. 'Yes yes, go up there, it's wonderful up there and don't forget to mention me!' He seems to be one of the last survivors of the holy church, thinks Mrs. Kati, at the ruins of which our path will pass.

A wonderfully fresh mossy scent shows us the way and as we leave the forest, the path gets narrower.

The sun greets us timidly with its rays and later provides us with fantastic weather.

Following the trail, I suddenly stop, so amazed I am.

I knew it, up here it won't be boring, giants must live here. One of them has actually lost his shoe here. Maybe when he was on the run, maybe from one of the rare forest residents like the hole crocodile.

Now I have a courage test. While the crocodile sleeps, I am supposed to pick the little cheese pieces out of its holes without waking it up.

Then I will be the heroine, says Mrs. Kati. Of course I am one, because the crocodile sleeps very, very deeply.

Even the 7-legged deer, which is watching curiously a few meters away, can't resist a little joyful gallop.

What an exciting day!

Mrs. Kati often stops and then she grins from ear to ear and tells me about a fantastic view and then she takes many photos and jumps in circles with joy.

That's how people are, each one as they like it, no one understands me either when I roll in the dung.

After a while with a wonderful sky and a lot of wind on our noses, we discover this.

A - well, let's say the remains of a house. We approach with curiosity the one-quarter-house with a window.

Mrs. Kati had almost suspected it, it is the remains of the church, probably the old home of the friendly monk. We enjoy the quiet atmosphere of the place and now understand where the church probably got its name from.

If you look through the window, you can see something truly sacred.

Paradise, the nature and beauty of the landscape, the colorful colors - it's what's worth being grateful for every day, says Mrs. Kati.

After a break with delicious raspberries that invite us to snack at the edge of the forest and a piece of cheese for me, our path leads us through the small sleepy village of Neufang. I have little opportunity for catching, because all the cats and chickens are probably taking a nap. A few friendly horses watch us curiously, and when we turn left towards the summit cross at the fire station, our blue miracle begins.

First gently, with some cornflower groups at the roadside, and on the hill of the so-called 'Neufänger Gipfelkreuz' it becomes more and more blue.

We stay up there for a while and take in the incredibly beautiful distant view - we almost couldn't decide which direction to go next. But we stick with blue, and slowly the path meanders like a soft grass carpet amidst many shades of blue and shapes.

Mrs. Kati can't get enough of it and she looks at it as well, how wonderful it is.

A poppy family now absolutely wants to be included in the next picture. 'Look, we are different, a touch of red gives your photo that certain something!'.

The yellow arrow also wants to be mentioned, of course. 'Stay here and enjoy my viewpoint!' it seems to be calling. But being so in love with blue will get even more exciting.

After a challenge to balance on long wooden beams, we actually pass a witch's house.

Unfortunately, the gingerbread is already nibbled away and a strange noise prompts me to quickly slip behind Mrs. Kati's legs.

I think witches nowadays prefer to talk to people instead of catching Hansel and Gretel.

By the way, I'm looking for Hansel there in vain and the evil witch turns out to be a nice old man splitting wood behind the cottage.

What an exciting encounter - when we arrive back at the edge of the forest, our hike is almost over.

There is still a natural spectacle to admire. Having turned the wrong way once, we have to turn back, but in return we get to meet the best dance couple in the forest.

The two spontaneously show us the Franken-Tango.

There is applause not only from us - even a sociable group of elderly green beards nod approvingly to the beat.

Only the sleeping stone hedgehog remains unaffected.

My conclusion for today:

The two-hour easy tour with the holy ascent and the magnificent view is simply a dream for humans and animals.

Magical greetings from the bewitched Gretl,

until the next adventure!