2024-06-09 49 11

Location

Inside the Lorenzer Reichswald

Participants

Expedition

Today's hash is another chance for a public transport tron hash for me. And an expedition on the day of the European Parliament Elections (at least in Germany), giving me a chance to claim the new Democracy_achievement. So that's two reasons to go, and since it's a Sunday I'll also have the time to do so. What more do I need to go hashing?

Since the hash is close enough to two different S-Bahn lines (S2 stops in Schwaig, S3 stops in Fischbach) I will start walking in Schwaig, hopefully reach the hash, and then continue south to Fishbach. I still have to figure out how to get back from there, but that's future me's problem.

After casting my vote earlier in the day, I start in Zirndorf station. Since the train I'm going to take departs on the southern track eastbound, and the one and only tunnel connecting the platform with the outside world is usually to the east of the doors on the train, I enter the station from the nothern end to avoid an immediate crossing of my own paths. That is a little inconvenient, since both the busses to Zirndorf and all train stations on different lines are to the south of Zirndorf station, but since we have enough rail crossings I can walk to, I'll just have to walk west when my expedition is almost over, find a convenient, safe and legal way to cross the tracks, and walk immediately north of the tracks back to the station. Not a big deal.

I mange to change trains in Fürth without issue. I leave my old train at its last (most westerly) door, walk east towards the central tunnel, cross below the tracks on which my train will depart, turn west again, and join the platform. Change of trains 1 of many successful.

Nuremberg central station is a different issue: Since I had to turn west in Fürth, I am quite west on the platform in Nuremberg, too. Usually, that's not a problem: Nuremberg has these great three different tunnels that make trons there so fun. But today I have a different problem: My S2 train I should take to reach Schwaig will call on the exact same tracks I just arrived on. Re-Entering the train through a door more easterly than I am right now will have me cross my own paths, invalidating my tron.

When my S2 train arrives, I immediately see that it's shorter than the one I arrived with, so there is no door to the west of me. If I enter this train, I'll fail my tron. I quickly think of alternatives. On the opposite platform, there is a S3 train, also eastbound. Since I already plan on using the S3 train on my way home, I could enter that one and just invert my route, walking from Fischbach to Schwaig instead of Schwaig to Fischbach. However, the challenge would then be the way back: Instead of passing south of Nuremberg central station, I would have to pass north, stay north of Fürth, and then find a way home. Unclear how that would work.

I could also wait for the next S2 train, hoping it's longer. But I doubt it, so I reject that too. Instead, I use the eastern tunnel to bail, and head for the streetcars. You see, Nuremberg has two streetcar lines interesting to me: Both are north of the S2 tracks, one running almost parallel for three stops until turning south for the zoo, the other one crossing the river Pegnitz running east on the northern side of the Pegnitz - eventually connecting to the regional trains that also run north of the Pegnitz. While the regional trains would not stop in Schwaig, they would stop in Behringersdorf, which would just add 1km to my walk to the hash (I could even walk from the zoo +1.5km to my walk). When I arrive at the streetcars, there's the line heading for the zoo leaving in just a minute. Just perfect! Now I just need to figure out which of the three S2 stops is best for me.

I settle for Mögeldorf, the last parallel streetcar/S2 stop. It's streetcar station is 100% west of its S2 station, and there's a stairs on its western end. No risk of being unable to enter the train without crossing my paths. And while they say no plan survives contact with the real world, my plan does. I'm in the next S2 train without issue and arrive in Schwaig a few minutes later.

My path to the general area of the hash is mostly along a high voltage line that cuts across the forest. In today's warm weather, I'd preferred more forest and less high voltage line, but I'll take what I can get, and it really makes it trivial to stay on path.

Since the hash isn't truly under the high voltage line, I eventually turn right onto a smaller path and into the forest. I'm still on an active Tron, so I make extra sure that I won't have to backtrack because I overshot the only convenient point to leave the path for the hash. Consequently, when I see a break in the bushes to my left - where the hash ultimately will be - I take it, even though it is still more than 300 meters to the hash.

These meters are as usual much more complicated than the distance indicates, since I have to do frequent small detours to avoid unfriendly fauna, but after some time I reach the hash and record proof.

My plan now is simple: Go south to the next path, then aim for Fishbach. After another two km of a nice walk, I'm in Fischbach (but still a bit away from the train station). I've been there for a previous hash. And I remember there's a nice bus that could take me to the station. Sadly, I see it leaving the bus stop a few moment before I leave the forest. Since the busses run every 40 mins on Sundays, waiting for the next one isn't worth it.

Instead I continue walking towards Fischbach station, and eventually pass a bus stop on a different line where I can get a bus in 15 minutes. That is a welcome opportunity to plan out how to get back. I originally planned on taking the S3 train for two stops, change into a streetcar at dutzendeich, and figure out a way from Landgrabenstraße, always staying slightly south of my route towards the hash. But my next bus doesn't terminate in Fischbach, but continues down to Langwasser. And that's an interesting opportunity: Instead of using the S3 trains that runs twice an hour, I can also use the metro U1 from Langwasser which runs every 10 minutes. So I decide to continue to Langwasser and change there.

I leave the U1 line at Frankenstraße, hoping to connect to the westbound bus 65 to Hohe Marter. But since I want to avoid the issues I had at Flughafen in my first expedition, I don't directly connect in Frankenstraße, but leave the station in a way that makes sure I don't accidentally cross the tracks I previously rode on (in this case, northbound), and walk one bus stop until I catch a ride on the 65. I do the same procedure in Hohe Marter too: Instead of waiting at the same station and having to deal with misaligned doors for my next bus 35 towards Gustav-Adolf-Straße, I just walk along the bus route to the next stop, and onboard there. See? It might have taken me a while but I am capable of learning. It's just very slow.

For my final change of busses, I arrive at Gustav-Adolf-Straße. Luckely for me, I know that station very well, and I find a way to go from the northbound 35's stop to my 70's initial stop without any crossing paths. Onboard the 70 I am sure I made the Tron, it's pure execution at that point.

My trusted 70 brings me home to Zirndorf station. Just one, last thing to do: Since I departed on the southerly track - and correspondingly entered the station from the north - I need to get to the northerly side of the station. I'm currently - to the south of it. But as dicussed in the beginning, I just walk west, take the nearest track-crossing, and walk parallel to the tracks on their nothern side until I reach the station again, this time from the notherly side, thereby completing my tron.