{"id":8864,"date":"2024-08-13T20:55:07","date_gmt":"2024-08-13T19:55:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/?p=8864"},"modified":"2024-09-27T00:51:43","modified_gmt":"2024-09-26T23:51:43","slug":"day-9-echternach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/2024\/08\/13\/day-9-echternach\/","title":{"rendered":"Day 9 – Echternach"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The day started on the Vianden Castle campsite\u2026 in case you\u2019re not keeping up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Parked in Vianden Campsite<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the end it was quite a decent site\u2026 see below!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The plan was then to drive to Enternach, about 30km away (still on the Luxembourg \/ German border), have a wander around and to do the Gorges du Loup followed by the Camping Belle-Vue 2000 campsite in Benedorf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Echternach<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Echternach was our first stop today. A lovely town with an abbey to wander around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But before we could do anything at all in this heat, we had to have a cafe stop in the square just to the side of the abbey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is there a \u201ctoo early\u201d to start drinking beer. The good news is that there\u2019s loads of soft drinks left for us when the locals are all knocking the beer back at 11am! For instance there were three locals in the cafe at well before noon and seemed to be making a day of it. But everywhere you got the tipple of choice, at any time of the day or night, seems to be beer!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Echternach Abbey 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Echternach Abbey 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Inside Echternach Abbey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The abbey was founded in the 8th century by St. Willibrord who was originally from Northumberland and trained at Ripon monastery. There was a good info room and you could even walk down into the crypt and see Willibrord\u2019s tomb!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boy, it\u2019s hot today. Not quite as hot as Cambridge\u2019s 34C but it\u2019s well into the 30s and tough to get out of the heat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a quick wander\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Echternach<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2026 we headed back to the van, saddled up and made our way to the local Cactus supermarket for some groceries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gorges du Loop – Not<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We next tried to do the Gorges du Loup outside Echternach. But Apple Maps took us to the back of a campsite with no obvious way of getting into the woods. We wandered down the side of the campsite but retreated to the van thinking we\u2019d best do a reccie with air conditioning!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We drove around the area a bit and headed to our campsite. On the way we spotted a couple of entrances to the woods but decided we\u2019d pitch the van and see what the campsite said about hiking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Camping Belle Vue 2000<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

And then on to camping Belle Vue 2000\u2026 not our favourite site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Camping Belle Vue 2000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Not enough shade so had to rig up a tarpaulin to the awning<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This site is way too big and way too cramped. The only redeeming factor is that the WiFi is blisteringly fast, at least in comparison to any other campsite we\u2019ve stayed at, and absolutely no signal dropout problems around our pitch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Good job too\u2026 we spent the next 5 hours trying to find accommodation for the next few nights. We eventually found somewhere in the other side of Trier for tomorrow and then finally something near to Auchern (Black Forest) for three nights (assuming our reservation is confirmed as I write this late in the evening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where Next<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I think we\u2019re starting to realize that we\u2019ll need to book a bit further ahead than just the next night. It was fine in the less busy areas but the Black Forest proved tricky!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the Black Forrest we\u2019ll try and get somewhere near lake Constance for one or two nights, then we think we\u2019ll probably do an AirBNB or hotel in Munich after that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We then think we\u2019ll try and do the Eagle\u2019s Nest WWII Hitler retreat after Munich and then do the Grossglockner pass after that. Then we\u2019ll be into Slovenia and Croatia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thunderbolt and Lightning\u2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

And at the end of the day we were treated to a evening light show\u2026 multiple massive thunderstorms rolling around the plains\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Thunderstorms<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Thunderstorms<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As we wandered around the campsite watching the thunderstorms, there were definitely bits of the site that weren\u2019t as cramped as our bit. The camping section seemed to be a lot more jolly than our bit. It\u2019s definitely still not our sort of campsite though\ud83e\udd37\u200d\u2642\ufe0f<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We now have 705 miles on the odometer this evening.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The day started on the Vianden Castle campsite\u2026 in case you\u2019re not keeping up. In the end it was quite a decent site\u2026 see below! The plan was then to drive to Enternach, about 30km away (still on the Luxembourg \/ German border), have a wander around and to do the Gorges du Loup followed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8868,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[53,52],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2024-summer-holiday-to-greece","category-travel"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/746a0306-1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8yl38-2iY","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8838,"url":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/2024\/08\/12\/day-8-vianden-castle\/","url_meta":{"origin":8864,"position":0},"title":"Day 8 – Vianden Castle","author":"John Martin","date":"August 12, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"We have two nights in the Vianden Castle Campsite. We\u2019re finding that unless it\u2019s a really limited amount of stuff we want to do in an area then it\u2019s best to stay two nights in a place. That way we have time to do whatever the area has to offer\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2024 Summer Holiday to Greece"","block_context":{"text":"2024 Summer Holiday to Greece","link":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/category\/travel\/2024-summer-holiday-to-greece\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5269.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5269.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5269.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5269.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5269.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5269.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10470,"url":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/2024\/10\/09\/day-65-home-again\/","url_meta":{"origin":8864,"position":1},"title":"Day 65 – Home Again","author":"John Martin","date":"October 9, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"And so our mini adventure ends. There\u2019s not much to say about the day itself and I\u2019ll leave the conclusions to further posts where I hope to pull some more considered thoughts together about the trip. However, for today, we did manage to get off from our one night stop\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2024 Summer Holiday to Greece"","block_context":{"text":"2024 Summer Holiday to Greece","link":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/category\/travel\/2024-summer-holiday-to-greece\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/img_8439.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/img_8439.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/img_8439.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/img_8439.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/img_8439.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/img_8439.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8891,"url":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/2024\/08\/14\/day-10-gorges-du-loup-trier\/","url_meta":{"origin":8864,"position":2},"title":"Day 10 – Gorges du Loup & Trier","author":"John Martin","date":"August 14, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Day 10 already! I\u2019ve had a few questions come in, mostly via WhatsApp\u2026 seeing as the website comments thing doesn\u2019t seem to work for everyone! So if you want to have a look at answers to the first Q&A post, then look here. After a night of rain and thunderstorms\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2024 Summer Holiday to Greece"","block_context":{"text":"2024 Summer Holiday to Greece","link":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/category\/travel\/2024-summer-holiday-to-greece\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/746a0328-2-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/746a0328-2-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/746a0328-2-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/746a0328-2-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/746a0328-2-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8801,"url":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/2024\/08\/11\/day-7-luxembourg-south-to-north\/","url_meta":{"origin":8864,"position":3},"title":"Day 7 – Luxembourg South to North","author":"John Martin","date":"August 11, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Today started with a fantastic breakfast spread laid on by our hosts Tom and Helen. Opted for the non-alcoholic option \ud83d\ude09 Of course we had long chats yesterday, where we learnt the difference between Billige Geschist (cheap shit) vs Gunstig (value). The Germans, of course, appreciate the latter and not\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2024 Summer Holiday to Greece"","block_context":{"text":"2024 Summer Holiday to Greece","link":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/category\/travel\/2024-summer-holiday-to-greece\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5203.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5203.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5203.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5203.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5203.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/img_5203.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8794,"url":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/2024\/08\/11\/day-6-charleroi-to-luxembourg\/","url_meta":{"origin":8864,"position":4},"title":"Day 6 – Charleroi to Luxembourg","author":"John Martin","date":"August 11, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"So, after a noisy night next to the River Semoy (I was kept awake by the endless campers heading down the gravel track to the loos) we awoke to the dulcet tones of the donkey we had previously thought to be quaint. It was probably 100m from our van, but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "2024 Summer Holiday to Greece"","block_context":{"text":"2024 Summer Holiday to Greece","link":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/category\/travel\/2024-summer-holiday-to-greece\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/20240811_132446_0019a-2-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/20240811_132446_0019a-2-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/20240811_132446_0019a-2-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/20240811_132446_0019a-2-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/20240811_132446_0019a-2-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/20240811_132446_0019a-2-1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8988,"url":"https:\/\/purplemeanie.co.uk\/index.php\/2024\/08\/17\/day-13-quiet-ride-to-buhl\/","url_meta":{"origin":8864,"position":5},"title":"Day 13 – Quiet Ride to B\u00fchl","author":"John Martin","date":"August 17, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"We hadn\u2019t got much planned today as we\u2019d done a bit of exploring by bus yesterday and were planning to do one of the Black Forest key attractions, a water-fall, as we head out tomorrow. 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