Season 1 Recap

My beginning in blogging was a product of a warm and sunny summer morning. I sat down on the balcony and just wrote for some hours and in the end I got the ten first posts finished. But of course there were some tweaks because of the order and stuff. After that headstart there where several evenings I spent on the balcony bringing up concepts for series and the blog itself. My girlfriend got annoyed when I asked her over and over again if this or that would work out but she got her payback.

I tried to get three post a week done but it only worked out for two weeks or so until I set back to two posts and that still works out perfectly. Also I tried to fit the series in the schedule without missing all the latest news I wanted to cover and now ended up with actually two monthly series and a lot of more or less instant content.

It was great to get out once a week, shooting pictures for the Board and Bike Spots. In general I fell in love with photography and even bought my first own camera. And Hamburg is a great city to get started with photography: modern and classic, urban and landscape.

That is my recap of my first six months of blogging with now finally many more to come.


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Hamburg Bike Spots - Once Upon a Time

Wonder why I chose this title? Well, this spot is still pretty nice. Beautiful views over the water and the fields, a nice BMX/MTB trail and lots of green. Your butt gets tortured a lot, but I guess that's just another side effect when riding your bike off road. This is the Westensee, a small artificial lake that was planned to become a hotspot for young families.

The problem is that it is pretty much at the west end of all the south-east suburbs. So, opposite of the resedentials there is nothing but fields and industrials. Doesn't sound that awesome, right? But on top there are plenty other lakes that are either more central or have better water and surroundings and therefor attract more people.

Over the last years the environment was pretty much left to itself and now there are more than two thirds of the beach covered in grass and all kinds of plants. Also the paths that made for wonderful bike trails became to tight with spiked branches on both sides to just shoot through them. I am actually quite shocked by that as I haven't been there for more than a year. And suddenly a wild nature appeared.

So next time I will visit another lake that is a lot better for a nice bike ride as well as your workout rides, even if it might be harder to reach. Also there is something new planned this Wednesday and Saturday. Until then, respect your spots and keep exploring.

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Hamburg Bike Spots - Out of the City

So today I revisited a place I've shown you before: The Zollenspieker Fährhaus. It's a hotel situated right next to the ferry station at the Elbe. I've been there on my morning bike ride, if you remember that. This is a post with only photos because this is just about the beauty of the area.

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Hamburg Bike Spots - Green, Planes, Sheep

Here we are, Hamburg Bike Spots episode one. This time it is not about a single route but a complete area of forest, dunes and slopes. The marked area on the map doesn't quite fit the actual area but it gets pretty close. I tried to cover as many of the individual spots as possible but as I said it's quite huge and many of the spots are hidden behind turns that don't actually look that inviting so although I personally kept exploring it for about two years I still find new trails and views every time.

We started at a little trail at the west-end of the area that leads through some trees and bushes. It is actually quite some fun to get along the tiny paths and try not to get your legs ripped apart by all the spiked branches reaching halfway over the path.









Following up there is a longer bit that is rather wide open and you can ride over the sand really fast and also have a wonderful view. You get the feeling of flying over all the little humps and also it feels like you aren't anywhere near Hamburg or even Germany.

You can also get along some small trails that have lots of soft sand on the ground - so wider wheels are recommended. And never stop, just try to drive through it and keep your front wheel straight. It's a great feeling to get across a hump that is fully covered with that sand and ride right down there.

Also, as seen on the map, there is that huge field with a airstrip. Actually there where ultra-lightweight planes flying that day. And also there were sheep. These sheep are part of the area and been there ever since I first explored the spot.




A bit further the surroundings changed to something rather forest-like. To the left was a hill of about 50 meters in total and there is a stair going up at one point. But going up is lame - let's get down there. In fact you could choose between the stairs - two meters forward from step to step - and a steeper bit. Guess what I chose.


However, this is it for today. More pictures, less text. Come back Wednesday for the first episode of the non-regular "Alien Post" series featuring a restaurant that I'm going to go to tonight or tomorrow evening. And still, keep exploring and save your spots.

Hamburg Bike spots / Hamburg Longboard spots - Introduction

Today I'm introducing two new series featuring Hamburg's best spots for longboarding and biking on and off road. I will start right where I live and spread out over Hamburg by the time that I covered everything close by. Each post will include a set of photos -- maybe a video -- and a map that the spot is marked on.
The posts on longboard spots will be released every other week starting on the second of August. The posts on bike spots will fill up the weeks in between.

While it is great to blog about what's just happening at the moment I need a way to bring a regular pattern of topics to the blog. This gets me the feeling of a blog that is to be taken serious and helps me keeping myself motivated.

I'm looking forward to this new project and would like to hear if you're with me. Come back next Saturday to see the first beautiful cruising track starring trains, horses and a prison. 'Till then, ride safe and protect your spots.