2023-06-13 53 9

Tue 13 Jun 2023 in 53,9: 53.3006520, 9.8429816 geohashing.info google osm bing/os kml crox

Location

in a forest in Buchholz in der Nordheide, Lower Saxony

Participants

• π π π (talk)

Expedition

Finally got the reverse regional achievement for my home graticule, after over five years of geohashing!

As I'm writing this half a year later, I'll try to keep it to the essentials. I'd wanted to do a hash in the Lower Saxony part of my home graticule for a long time, but had missed many great opportunities for various reasons. Today's was too perfect to pass over.

After uni, I took a train to Buchholz via Hamburg main station. It took me a while to find the way over the tracks to where I wanted to. From the station, I cycled 4.4 km south-west, the last part through the steep Lohbergen forest. I eventually reached the hash not far from a path and decided to explore the forest for a bit: It looked primeval, like one of those amazing fairytale forests you typically only find in southern Germany. Right next to the hash was a small gorge, dramatically named Höllenschlucht (Hell's Canyon). I walked it for a while, amazed by the knobby roots of some of the trees, and wondering how it came to be.

I decided to take a different route back, using some of the smaller forest paths, and it turned into something of a mountain biking adventure. It was very steep, mostly downhill, on winding and uneven tracks through the dense forest. I tried to keep roughly the right direction and finally ended up on a bigger path. Hadn't had this much fun while cycling in a long time, even though my bike definitely wasn't made for this.

I started cycling back to the station, noticing the time and realising I wouln't be able to explore some of the city as I'd originally planned. I reached my platform and decided to quickly buy some water from a nearby supermarket, since my bottle was empty, it was very hot and I was thirsty. I had to cross the tracks again to get there, and by the time I arrived I was already short on time. Of course I had to wait at the counter, and when I was finally out I sprinted to my bike, raced across the bridge and down to my platform to board my train just as it arrived. Why does this keep happening‽

Photos

to follow

Achievements

Land geohash, Public transport geohash

π π π earned the Reverse regional achievement by reaching hash points in all 3 regions of the Hamburg-West, Germany (53, 9) graticule on state level.