The lovely walks along the Alster river in Hamburg have featured before on Writsomnia. I’m definitely a fan. Why? It’s a long walk and it’s easy to plan, still offering practical access to the city in the midst of a healthy helping of nature.  This time I set off with a specific mission in mind: I wanted to capture as much as I could of the local autumn foliage before November’s wintry weather sets in. Mission accomplished!

Yellow and orange or brown are the dominant colors in Hamburg’s autumn landscape, which makes the occasional red leaves stand out all the more. This walk has been one of my mainstays for the last 12 years. Whenever I don’t have any other ideas on where to go when I crave a long wander not too far away, the Alster never disappoints. This is especially soothing, and practical, in these times, as Hamburg has fairly recently been declared a risk area by Germany, making all of us think twice about traveling elsewhere and the restrictions we might have to face both when getting out and getting back in. Staycation it is.

One of my favorite routes to follow: walk down the Alsterchaussee, which takes you straight to the Alsterpark and the first of many magnificent trees dotting the walk, then simply walk towards the water, turn left and keep going, stopping for a great view of the water on the Krugkoppelbrücke and Fernsichtbrücke  bridges, which follow each other. After that there are several alternatives, some of which I have yet to explore, but in this case I continued along Bellevue and then just followed the shoreline all along Schöne Aussicht, on to Schwanenwik and until I reached the busier area of An der Alster, where it becomes obvious that you are once again closer to the city. At this point you can decide whether you continue on foot towards Dammtor Train station, which would offer a few more lovely views of trees and water, or walk on to Jungfernstieg and all the public transport options it offers.

It always feels a little strange to return to daily civilization after switching off for 2 hours of leisurely strolling (3 if you stop to take pictures and sit on a bench looking at the water). But then, this escape is always there waiting.