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2019 - Germany - October
We were off again in October, this time to southern Germany. We needed to visit the Carthago factory,
where we had brought our Carthago back in 2013, to have some work carried out. We had also arranged to
hire a Malibu camper van for a few days to find out whether we liked it and whether we felt that we could
readily downsize to a much smaller camper.
On the journey down to Aulendorf, we had arranged to meet up with Kathy and Jochen Ladwig in Bad
Duerrheim. This required two quite long days of driving to get there.
Our first overnight stop was in Prum, which is just over the border into Germany from Belgium. As usual
the Belgian roads were heavy traffic and it was wet and rainy. We have stopped in Prum several times in the
past as it is a convenient distance from Calais. The campsite is a bit run down and has many long staying
caravans which look a little scruffy. The facilities are fine. It is mainly grass pitches so, in the winter months
the hard standing is a bit limited. OK for a stop over but would not recommend a longer period.
By the next morning, the weather had improved and we travelled south through the beautiful scenery of
Germany and France towards Bad Deurrheim. The map above shows the route we should have taken but the
on-board SatNav had different ideas - arrrgh! The guidance took us right through the city centre of
Saarbrucken (which was really busy with traffic) and then, later on, took us right through the city centre of
Strasbourg - nightmare!! If she doesn’t buck up her route planning she will get the sack! Never mind we
arrived safely in the end but it was quite a tiring day.
Bad Deurrheim, is a very popular, spa town and has a huge, hot spring
pool. The motorhome stellplatz is located right alongside the swimming
baths car park and the stellplatz is enormous!! (see photo below).
To find out more, click on the logo (right). It is a German language video
but it will give you a good impression of this very attractive area.
Kathy and Jochen Ladwig
(fellow members of Carthago
Owners) had arranged to meet
up with us at the Stellplatz and
had saved a space for us. Thank
goodness they did because the
park was virtually full. It was
due to be a beautiful sunny
weekend and everyone had
decided to get away for the
weekend!
The saved space was only just
big enough for us but we
managed to wriggle in!
We had a walk into town and it
is delightful. We enjoyed a very
good meal with Kathy and
Jochen in a local restaurant.
(left upper) Jochen, Kathy and George
(above) the beautiful park in Bad
Deurrheim
(left lower) This is a display of the
traditional way of extracting the valued
salts from the local hot springs. The water
is dribbled over these high walls of twigs.
The wind dries the water and leaves the
salts behind on the twigs. Every so often,
the salts are harvested from the twigs. You
can see where the salts are beginning to
collect in the greyer areas of the twig walls.
Jochen and Kathy are thinking about organising a Carthago
Owners get together in Bad Deurrheim in spring 2021. We
think it makes an excellent location. Plenty to see and lovely
cafés and restaurants in the town.
We enjoyed our stopover and it was lovely weather. It was time to leave and drive two hours to the Carthago
factory in Aulendorf. There is a stellplatz on site at Carthago. If you are booked into the workshop for work to
be done then you get a free delivery of fresh rolls in the morning. The downside is that the workshop
reception opens at 7:00am, so you have to be up and about pretty early!!!
Our workshop visit was expected to take around 4 to 5 days. The job was to cure a bubble which appeared on
the sidewall when the sun warmed it up and disappeared as the temperature cooled again. The adhesive, in a
small area, had failed between the outer aluminium skin and the insulating, high-density foam layer. The fix
was to inject new adhesive into the failed area and clamp it together. However, it then needed to cure for a
few days before being driven.
Rather than being stuck in a hotel for several days, we had rented a Malibu Van (made by Carthago) for four
days. We had been thinking about downsizing and the rental was to assess whether we felt comfortable going
down to a considerably smaller motorhome. We packed everything we needed for four days touring, clothes,
wash kit, food, drink, cooking equipment, cutlery, crockery, bed linen and duvets, books, maps, etc. etc. into
several large bags and then carried them to the van that would be our home for the rest of the week.
.
How did we get on ? We loved it! We
were amazed at how much storage space
was available. Of course, the inside area
was much less but we soon got used to
managing. The shower/toilet actually
offers more space and comfort than in our
larger motorhome.
This rental van was not the largest in the
range and there were two big
disadvantages. One was the transverse
bed which we did not like at all because it
was difficult to get in and out of and also
the person nearest the back had to climb
over the other person if they needed to
get upin the middle of the night. OK for
youngsters but not for OAPs!.
The other downside was that the van cab had an overhead locker above the driving seats. Fine when you are
seated but you are forever bashing your head when moving around! But not to worry because there are
different models which offer lengthwise twin beds and have no overhead locker in the cab area.
It took us a while to get everything stowed away and then we set off on our trial.
First stop was at Camping Brunnen, just outside Fussen. We have stayed here before a couple of times. The
scenery is simply beautiful and in autumn, the colours are amazing.
(below) a few of the breathtaking views. (click to enlarge)
We discovered, early on, that we really liked the fact that there was
only a shallow step down to the outside rather than the four fairly
significant steps on our present motorhome. The similar levels brought
the outside to the inside as if they were all one, whereas, on our
existing motorhome you are either in or out and they are distinctly
different areas.
We planned to move on to visit Austria next day via the Fern Pass and
to stay at Seefeld. It was a beautiful day and a delight to tour in the
Tyrol. We discovered that in the smaller van we could actually overtake
other vehicles whilst driving uphill - something that is impossible in
the larger motorhome.
We also discovered that we can easily pull into Supermarket car parks and take up just one space instead of
looking for a place where there are four adjacent spaces free.
When we eventually arrived in Seefeld we were amazed to find that Camping Alpin had closed! It had a notice
board saying that it was closed for refurbishment but it looked sadly neglected. A shame as it was a lovely site to
visit. We had to move on and so we drove back into Germany and stopped at Alpen Caravan Park in Tennsee. This
is just north of Mittenwald and of the Karwendel range of mountains that sit on the German/Austrian border.
We had stayed here before when it was covered in snow, when we had joined a Carthago organised winter
event. In summer it is even more stunning.
On site is a very nice, traditional alpine restaurant which serves very tasty food and well worth a visit. We opted
to stay inside the campsite as it provides water and drainage on the pitch and has very high quality
toilet/shower facilities. There is an option to stop on the stellplatz which is just outside the campsite entrance
but this only offers hook up - no water.
(right) On-site, traditional style alpine
restaurant at Alpen Caravan Park, Tennsee.
Photo: Alan Rogers
All around the campsite there are wonderful
walks and cycle rides. A delightful location to
spend sometime exploring and particularly
so with the autumn colours.
(see below) Click to enlarge
Click on logo to visit website
We strongly recommend a
visit if you are in the area.
