Germany Useful Resources

A variety of publishing companies offer guidebooks to meet the educational needs of novice or expert hikers. For information about camping, hiking, and biking, write or call the publishers listed below to receive a free catalog. Campers heading to Europe should consider buying an International Camping Carnet. Similar to a hostel membership card, it is required at a few campgrounds and sometimes provides discounts. It is available in North America from the Family Campers and RVers Association and in the UK from The Caravan Club (below).

Automobile Association, Contact Centre, Lambert House, Stockport Rd., Cheadle SK8 2DY, UK (☎+44 8706 000 371; www.theAA.com). Publishes Caravan and Camping Europe and Britain & Ireland (UK£10) as well as road atlases for Europe, Britain, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain, and the US.
Camping Germany, (www.camping-germany.de). Offers information and pictures for campgrounds access the country. Contains charming English grammatical errors.
The Caravan Club, East Grinstead House, East Grinstead, West Sussex, RH19 1UA, UK (☎+44 1342 326 944; www.caravanclub.co.uk). For UK£34, members receive access to sites, insurance services, equipment discounts, maps, and a monthly magazine.
Family Campers and RVers, 4804 Transit Rd., Bldg. #2, Depew, NY 14043, USA (☎+1-800-245-9755; www.fcrv.org). Membership (US$25) includes a subscription to Camping Today magazine.
Sierra Club Books, 85 2nd St., 2nd fl., San Francisco, CA 94105, USA (☎+1-415-977-5500; www.sierraclub.org). Publishes general resource books on hiking and camping, as well as specific guides on Germany.
The Mountaineers Books, 1001 SW Klickitat Way, Ste. 201, Seattle, WA 98134, USA (☎+1-206-223-6303; www.mountaineersbooks.org). Over 600 titles on hiking, biking, mountaineering, natural history, and conservation.
Woodall Publications Corporation, 2575 Vista Del Mar Dr., Ventura, CA 93001, USA (☎+1-877-680-6155; www.woodalls.com). Annually updates campground directories.

Leave No Trace. Let’s Go encourages travelers to embrace the “Leave No Trace” ethic, minimizing their impact on natural environments and protecting them for future generations. Trekkers and wilderness enthusiasts should set up camp on durable surfaces, use cookstoves instead of campfires, bury human waste away from water supplies, bag trash and carry it out with them, and respect wildlife and natural objects. For more detailed information, contact the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, P.O. Box 997, Boulder, CO 80306, USA (☎+1-800-332-4100 or 303-442-8222; www.lnt.org).