A weekend on the road: we opted for a raft tour with Huckleberrys and arrived in Zehdenick with the regional train and full backpacks. We received a friendly welcome, a short introduction, a last stop at the supermarket for provisions, and off we went to the countryside. Our route was two days and two nights heading north, with the final destination being the Capriolenhof organic goat cheese dairy. My children and I were equipped with carving knives, binoculars, playing cards and flashlights. I added a sleeping mat, mosquito spray and some reading material for entertainment, as there is no electricity on the boat and no real reception on the Havel. After the first stage, we moored the raft on a quiet bank for our first night. There were plenty of mosquitoes humming around at sunset. Yes, nature can be so beautiful and so brutal. Fortunately, a mosquito net was provided with the rafting equipment, as was the barbecue.
The next morning, we still had 20 kilometers to raft. In addition to nature, we discovered brick ruins with huge chimneys along the banks, and old brickworks because the Havel served as one of the most important transport routes in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg and Berlin since the Middle Ages. Today, the water is calmer, the banks are becoming more and more renaturalized, and the high reeds and alders provide a home for herons, beavers and fish. After five hours, three lock crossings, two swimming breaks, and a picnic, we discovered a herd of goats grazing contently at the water’s edge and knew we had reached our destination. We took a break at the Capriolenhof, ate goat’s cheesecake and a goat’s cheese platter, and enjoyed cappuccino with goat’s milk. While the kids romped around in the tall grass, I sat in the sun and thought about what rating I would give this weekend on the Havel — a nine out of ten, because I missed my soft mattress a bit, but of course, I wouldn’t tell my children that. When I get home and have internet again, I’ll buy the Mark Twain classic for our evening bedtime reading.
Text & Photos: Laura Iriondo
Huckleberrys Floßstation
@huckleberrys_tour.de
@fortuna.forest
