It finally took place from 5 to 7 April 2025 - our first practice expedition as part of the Gold Duke of Edinburgh's International Award. Although the programme has been established at Schule Schloss Salem for decades, this tour was new for us and an incredibly great experience!

We travelled by train to Mühlhausen, from where the entire group hiked to the first camp at Hohenkrähen. The first day together was spent practising setting up the tent and operating the gas cooker. After a rather cold night, the groups split up and we, the Goldspatzen, had around 22.5 kilometres (32,000 steps) ahead of us on this day. Our motivation remained high throughout the day – especially at the sight of the beautiful landscape of the Hegau region and thanks to sufficient refreshments. After around six hours of walking, we reached the Hardthof near Mahlspüren, where we pitched our tents for the second night. After a few rounds of Uno, ravioli with tomato sauce and a little exploration of our surroundings at sunset, we went to sleep, as another exciting day and the final stage lay ahead of us.

We had another 22.9 kilometres to cover on the third day. From Stockach we headed towards Sipplingen, and soon we could see the lake in the distance and knew: it couldn't be much further! That spurred us on and we ran even faster. And then, a few songs later, we saw Schloss Spetzgart ! Together we ran the last few metres towards home and fell into the arms of Mr. Balzer and Mrs. Böhler, relieved.

Some of our group had had great respect for this hike - but together we mastered it and realised how much we had in us ... and also how liberating three days without a mobile phone can be!