It was past 2 p.m. We had already walked 12 km and now we followed the signs to Lohme. We continued on the cliff top path, which is less spectacular from here, through forest for another 4 km. My feet were now beginning to ache. Reaching Lohme at 15:15 we realized that the bus we were planning to take at 16:15 ran only during school holidays, meaning that we would have to wait until 17:11 for the next one. We were hoping that there may even be a boat connection back to Sassnitz from Lohme, but there wasn't. Would have been a good alternative to get a view of the cliffs from the sea. Boat tours do leave from Sassnitz. Instead of waiting for two long hours we decided to walk back another 4 km along the road to Hagen from where another bus was leaving at 16:35. The last kilometres were killing me, but we just made it with a few minutes to spare to grab an ice-cream. Hagen has a big parking area from where the shuttle busses to Königsstuhl leave. It would probably have been better to walk straight here, instead of continuing all the way to Lohme. We got off the bus at bus stop Sassnitz Hauptstraße. From here it was still quite a walk back to the car park. Perhaps we should rather have parked at the Kreidefelsen car park (may even have been free of charge?) and walked along the cliff top path until Kieler Bach, instead of going down to the beach. There was a bus stop just opposite that car park (Waldhalle). Got back to Binz at 5:30 p.m.
 

Granitz Hunting Lodge - Seaside Resorts Sellin/Baabe/Göhren
Day 8: Saturday, 11th Sep. 2004
19 °C, sunny in the morning, rain from midday

The weather forecast had announced rain for today, but when we got up in the morning the sun was still shining. So we decided to go on a cycling tour towards the Mönchgut peninsula. We took two of the bikes belonging to the holiday villa and cycled up the hill through the Granitz Forest to the Granitz (Royal) Hunting Lodge on the 107 metres high Tempelberg. We had left at 9:30 a.m. and an hour later we had reached our first destination. The admission charge was 3 € plus 1 € for the photo permission. The little castle has a 38-metre viewing tower which can be accessed via an iron staircase winding up the wall. The tower offers a unique panoramic view. By the time we emerged on top, clouds had come up. We cycled on towards Sellin. At least the cycle track from the hunting lodge to Sellin went downhill most of the time. We reached the town around 12 p.m. and had a coffee at the pier. Sellin's most famous landmark, which was destroyed in the icy winter of 1942, has been reconstructed since 1992, a few years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall. Many of Sellin's houses, like those in Binz, were built in resort architecture style.

Shortly after we had left the café, it started to rain. Nevertheless we continued on our way to the seaside resorts Baabe and Göhren. The Baltic resort of Göhren is the last stop for the small gorge steam railway Racing Roland that connects the towns of Putbus, Binz, Sellin, Baabe and Göhren. A train was just due at the station so we waited a little while to see it. Then we cycled on to Bollwerk Baabe. By now the rain got heavier. From Bollwerk Baabe a rowing boat ferry takes cyclists (1 € per bike) and foot passengers (0.50 € per person) to Moritzdorf. From there we cycled up a hill with wildflower meadows. It would really have been a lovely ride if only the weather had been better. By the time we passed through Seedorf, it had at least stopped raining again. In the area around Lancken-Granitz a number of megalithic graves or dolmen can be found, but it was already getting late and we had been on the road for quite a while, so we didn't stop to take a look around. We returned to Binz via Lake Schmachter and did a bit of shopping at Lidl. It was 5 p.m. when we got back to our holiday flat. My rough guess is that we covered approximately 30 km on this tour.

Of Rügen's most important seaside resorts Binz has the advantage that it opens out to the sea with a long seaside promenade. But it's also the main tourist hub. Sellin has the most prominent pier, but only very few houses have a sea view. Baabe didn't seem very interesting at all. Göhren has a pretty town centre, but it's on top of a hill with the seaside promenade quite a way off.

Cape Arkona
Day 9: Sunday, 12th Sep. 2004
18 °C, changeable

We left around 10 a.m., drove to Sassnitz and had a look around the harbour. The day started off very cloudy, but when we reached Cape Arkona, the northernmost point in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and of the Isle of Rügen, at 11:30 a.m. the sun was coming out. From the parking area (3 €) it's a 2 km walk to the two lighthouses, or you can take the tourist train (0.50 €). It took us 40 minutes on foot. From the lighthouses we climbed down the stairs of the Kaisertreppe to the bottom of the cliffs. Afterwards we took the 1.3 km path along the cliff top to the picturesque fishing village Vitt. The village with its thatched roof houses retains a feel of the past century. By now it had got cloudy again and just when we had left the village and found ourselves in the open field, we were surprised by a fast moving rain front. The rain was driving hard and our left side was soaked in a minute. At least the rain was gone as fast as it had come up. But it would have been wiser if we had jumped on the tourist train that was just leaving the village when we did. It was 1.5 km back to the parking area and it was 2 p.m. when we finally got back to the car. We drove on to Dranske, just opposite the island of Hiddensee. The wind was very strong and the waves were breaking on the pebbly beach. By now we were quite dry again and we stopped for coffee and cake at a bakery in Wiek. Got back to Binz at 4:30 p.m. and had a walk around.