Reinbek and Aumühle 2011

It was the first sunny day after a grey dreary soup of fog had taken hold of Hamburg for two weeks in row. The city was bathed in autumn light, which gave a soft touch to everything. I inhaled the clear air while waiting for the bus. A few golden leaves were sailing through the air, tumbling down and landing ruggedly on the ground. The bus was coming and off I went on my way to Reinbek. From there I wanted to start hiking to Aumühle on a trail I had not walked before. I have been living in the area for roundabout 30 yearsl, but there are so many forest tracks and acres to cross, that one has a lot of options to discover an unknown corner.

Leaving the bus I passed the red brick church and turned into a road with nice mansions lining the sidewalk. At its end started a path into the little forest Vorwerksbusch. Three teenage boys were fighting with staves playing either knights, starwars or kung fu. A few joggers were puffing little clouds of breath into the air. A dog was snuffing the trees. I had not gone far, when I spotted a site caravan

between the trees. However this was not the home of construction workers but the
meeting point of a forest kindergarten. It is a nursery, where the children spent the whole morning discovering nature and mainly playing with things they have picked up on there excursions.

Misty light radiated among the trees. Only a few brown leaves were left on the branches. I pulled on my gloves and covered my ears. My legs felt a bit stiff in the frosty air. I headed for the edge of the forest, where the river Bille bordered the tree line. I followed the slowly meandering creek to Wohltorf, the next small town on the map.

In Wohltorf I turned into the road to Silk estate. Birds were singing in the leafless bushes. Some people were riding on the outdoor school and watched for a moment fluent movements of the elegant horses. Their coat was shimmering in the sun.

The avenue was lined with oak trees, who already had lost most of their leaves. Left and right I could see far across the harvested acres. Fresh green already sprouted again out of the ground.

Crossing a countryside highway I heard ducks quacking. Through the bushes on my left I spotted a little pond. More than half its surface was already frozen and mallards rested on the ice putting their beak under their wings so that their nose did not freeze. When they heard my feet most of them stepped back into the water, feeling obviously safer there than on the thin ice.

The leaves on the ground were showing a diversity of colours from deep dark red, brown green and yellow. Many of them were crusted with delicate shining white ice christals. They seemed to be pieces of art created by nature.

A few pink blossoms were still dangling in a bush. Red berries looked like a pretty proclamation, that we were nearing the 1st advent.

Along a dirt path and through a little patch of forest I turned east and headed roughly into the direction of the town Aumühle. The last golden oak leaves were dappled by the sun.
Some last red campions held there head up in the baulk. Then sun was slowly getting lower and the air was bitingly crisp.

In a little forest a deserted anthill was a quiet reminder that winter was drawing nearer. And when I reached the edge woods a field of Chritsmas trees greeted me.

Together with another group of Sunday strollers I turned a path that was still enveloped by a bright golden roof. Our feet rustled in a thick layer of leaves. Then the path got muddier. On my left towers of mineral water crates loomed behind the fence of the Bismarck Quelle, a local producer of mineral water and lemonade. I reached the main road to the train station and decided to end my walk here though there was still one hour left till sunset. But my leg muscles felt stiff with coldness and I was looking forward for my warm appartment and a big mug of coffee.