02. Sep 2026

Luxembourg - Schengen

Photo 1: Much of the day I would be walking along the French - Luxembourg border, and most of the day I could see the Cattenom Nuclear Power Plant in northeastern France located about 10 km from the German and Luxembourg borders. I am not sure how happy Germany and Luxembourg were about the construction of this nuclear plant so close to their borders, but one thing is for sure: If anything would happen, France would get quick help from her neighbors!

Photo 2: Willy could hardly believe it. After 79 days on the Snail-Trail we would be crossing the Schengen bridge from Luxembourg to Germany. Schengen is a small village in Luxembourg famous for hosting the signing of the historic 1985 Schengen Agreement, which created a border-free travel zone across much of Europe. On June 14, 1985, representatives from five European nations (Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands) signed the agreement aboard a riverboat on the Moselle River.

Photo 3: The border to Germany in the middle of the Schengen Bridge. For the next week though I would be in and out of Germany and back in France until I would cross the bridge from Strasbourg into Germany. So... not quite there yet.

Photo 4: Looking out from Germany to the Moselle River and the countries of France and Luxembourg.

Photo 5: There was no campground that I knew of and the youth hostel in Schengen was booked out. I decided to continue on, the the hill from where I took photo 4, and try to find a spot in the woods where I could put my tent. I was so happy to find this picnic shelter. There was enough room for me to lay out my sleeping bag on the concrete floor. With the roof over my head, everything stayed dry from dew. I could hear the crickets singing at night... music for sleeping.