Day 2 - Potsdam

Late departure from the train station hotel after iffy breakfast buffet. Back on our trail, a pleasant woody walk through the Düppel Forest, past a nice-looking forest inn that we wish we'd made it to, with a large sunny beer garden. Follow the north bank of the Griebnitzsee to Babelsberg Park, the sprawling summer residence of Kaiser Wilhelm. The castle here has elaborate glass windows, towers, and balconies -- clearly meant to be enjoyed, not defended. But it's currently being restored, so the picture's so-so:

A nice day though! Other famous monuments here are the courthouse (actually just the top floor of the old Berlin courthouse, relocated here) and the Flatow Tower (a replica of a tower in Frankfurt a.M.). I thought a picture of the tower through the arches of the courthouse would be nice:

But I guess it's a common shot; the Yahoo weather app on my phone has a nicer one:

Leaving Babelsberg, the trail is closed due to construction and we're forced to detour through Innenstadt, the neighborhood on the west side of the Havel. On the way back across we enjoy lunch on Friendship Island.

Just south of the Potsdam central train station, we reach the official intersection of the E10 and E11 trails:

We're leaving the E11 and heading south on the E10 towards Südtirol in the Italian Alps -- obviously we won't get that far! 

Back into the woods south of Potsdam, we cross over our first so-called mountain, Kleiner Ravensberg. Only 114 meters, but it feels high anyway.

And then we can go no more. There's no lodging or legal camping available, so we sneak off to the side and subtly make camp. It doesn't feel like a real hike until the first night in the tent. As night falls, the forrest is quiet except for the distant sound of the trains.