14/10/2022
Last night we lay beneath a quiet canopy when suddenly the tent filled with a flash of light. “What was that?” I whispered waking out of a dream state. But the clap of thunder answered before Steven could and it seemed for a moment the entire forest vibrated.
How odd to reflect, the night we spent just before crossing into Germany back in August was also filled with thunder and lightning. So it seemed fitting for our last to greet us just the same, tucked within a forest very much like the first.
Now as we cross into Austria on the outskirts of Salzburg we bid farewell to the German wood, remembering fondly the owls who called out in the night and the many mushrooms springing from mossy beds.
Yet we hold also the memory of these still woods, how managed and even unnatural they often seemed. Access to forests were often granted by tracks made for logging vehicles, and evidence of the timber industry rung out at every corner, in the piles of logs, markings on trees and almost mechanical formation of the forest.
Even here we are humbled by the song of nature rising higher than man’s will, for it rings in the very stone beneath our tires, far more powerful than any machines.
We cannot speak for all the forests of Germany but what we’ve seen from Scotland to here is a world no longer wild, only strictly measured and maintained. Farm fields have replaced most of the trees.
Now we face the ancient Alps and their mysterious blue majesty rising into the heavens seems to reflect a yearning within us, far beyond traffic lights and cars roaring by.
We go forth tuned into the thunder, looking to the trees, keen to hear what all the other voices have to say.
We bid farewell to Germany, grateful for our time here and all that occurred, the launch of our blog - link in the bio - the path forward and so much more. 🌲🦉🍄🦔✨
