Europe Trip Part Zwei

My jet lag still hasn't straightened itself out so I apologize for not staying on top of blogging and updating about my trip, even post return, as I promised. Here are some pictures of some of the gorgeous nature and national parks that we visited. This was a core focus of our class. We traveled to different parks in Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland to better understand their governance systems and analyze their management programs. Interestingly to us we found that despite the EU (with the exception of Switzerland) directives on natural resource management guiding their systems--every park that we visited was managed completely different. If you are interested in this, let me know, I'll send you my final project when it's finished. All in all, traveling these different areas was a great way to see Europe and all that it has to offer. Enjoy!

In the Bavarian Forest they have constructed a tree top walk that ends with this journey to the top of the tree with gorgeous views of the Bavarian Forest and the cities that surround. We were here on the most beautiful of days and the tree top walk gave an interesting perspective to the forest as you were looking down into it. They had lots of fun activities throughout the walk for children to learn more about the forest.

These are the views from the top of the tree top walk. The majority of the Bavarian Forest is the right of this picture.

The view from our hotel in Berchtesgaden. This was the most beautiful city we stayed in and had so much culture. During our time here we hiked through Berchtesgaden National Park. Absolutely breathtaking...and some delicious beer as Bavaria is known for.

A picture from the hike through Berchtesgaden National Park. We cheated on this hike by taking a bus to the highest point and hiking down the mountain. We were able to visibly see the management differences between the buffer zones and core zones and the different practices carried out in each zone.

A beautiful water fall in Berchtesgaden National Park. We also saw beautiful orchids on the hike.

View from a lookout at Eifel National Park (Germany). This part of the park is known for its limestone. Eifel National Park is very well funded by the state (National Parks in Germany are state run) with great facilities, signage, and trails. They have a fully handicap accessible trail as well as very well maintained more rigorous trails.

We were highly entertained by the giant slugs at Eifel National Park. See the orange spots on the tree?

Eifel National Park is also home to one of the training grounds for the Nazi party during Hitlers regime. It was so interesting as we visited many of these parks to see the necessity of cultural integration in natural resource management and protection.

Hohes Venn Nature Park. This area is known for its peat moss. When we visited, about two months prior, they had just experienced a fire...which if you know anything about peat moss, it is highly flammable. It was so interesting to see many of the trees and structures totally burnt to the ground. As we all know how much I love Disney, I referenced it to looking like you were walking through The Lion King when Scar takes over. tee hee. don't judge.

Hohes Venn also was home to a lot of different carnivorous plants. So cool!

This is our group hiking through Siebingeberge Nature Park, the first designated nature reserve areas in Germany. This day was a very rigorous hike for us but we made it to the top where there is a big castle and great views of the Rhine River.

Hiking through Siebingeberge Nature Park. So much green makes this girl happy :)

Siebingeberge means seven mountains in German. These mountains were once active volcanoes. This holes in the ground are condensed volcanic ash that bats and other critters use as homes now.

And of course and really cool tree shot from Siebingeberge.

Weiner Heide Nature Park (Belgium). Here at Weiner Heide shepherds still have access due to historical reasons to graze on the land despite the fact that its a protected area....although I think that is strange those goats sure were funny and cute.

Amphibians had made a home in an old Nazi vehicle washing basin. We saw tons of different amphibians in this area. It is amazing to see how quickly they have made this their permanent home.

Views from Glacier Express, a World Heritage Site in itself. This train took us through Germany, Austria, and Switzerland showing us some of the most beautiful views of the region.

Here is a picture of the Glacier Express with all glass windows on the top and sides. Such a cool way to see this beautiful area.

Glacier Express again.

Swiss National Park. So beautiful.

We had a pretty rainy and cold day in the Swiss National Park but it still was amazing. This hike was the toughest for me probably because of the altitude difference but was amazing all the same. We stopped a lot throughout our hike to observe lots of active wildlife. The right of the this picture we saw a group of Chamois with little babies jumping around enjoying the rain.

If you look in the center of this picture we saw a two marmots. Sooooo cool.

The cloud cover really inhibited our visibility but you can still see how majestic the mountains are in the fade of the haze. Swiss National Park.

And of course - cows in Switzerland. I got a little bit too excited and got shocked by the fence trying to pet the cows. They were soooo cute.

Hope you enjoy the pictures! If you ever get the chance to go to Europe although the cities are spectacular take a day trip to one of the local parks and really get a look at how amazing this region is. Check my facebook if you want to see more pictures as I plan on uploading some later today.