In October 2015, I was finally able to hike the Malerweg (Painter's Way), a historical hiking route in Germany near Dresden, together with my family.
Starting in good weather, conditions soon became a little bit more challenging with rain and cold weather, and lots of gravel on the "well prepared forest paths". Curiously, the paths labelled as "challenging" in the hiking guide were for me the most pleasurable to walk, while the label "wide forest path" was a signal of trouble (= gravel) ahead.
Nevertheless, I managed to hike the full path (about 115 km) barefoot, including many steel stairs and ladders, and some days with temperatures below zero (Celsius) in the morning.
In summary, I am glad to report that extended hiking trips in moderately challenging conditions are not only possible barefoot, but a lot of fun. Of course, I got a lot of commentaries (mostly simply astonished and friendly), but that was to be expected, and no problem at all.
Attached are some pictures ...
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Starting in good weather, conditions soon became a little bit more challenging with rain and cold weather, and lots of gravel on the "well prepared forest paths". Curiously, the paths labelled as "challenging" in the hiking guide were for me the most pleasurable to walk, while the label "wide forest path" was a signal of trouble (= gravel) ahead.
Nevertheless, I managed to hike the full path (about 115 km) barefoot, including many steel stairs and ladders, and some days with temperatures below zero (Celsius) in the morning.
In summary, I am glad to report that extended hiking trips in moderately challenging conditions are not only possible barefoot, but a lot of fun. Of course, I got a lot of commentaries (mostly simply astonished and friendly), but that was to be expected, and no problem at all.
Attached are some pictures ...
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