The Whole Truth

Source: Everywheremag

One of the reasons to travel to Germany is its many naturally beautiful regions are perfect for a lovely stroll in the great outdoors.

Thanks to the large size of the country and its location in Central Europe, Germany contains a wide variety of diverse landscapes within its borders. You can go from rugged and chilly coastline in the north to rolling rural hills in the centre, and then the dramatic peaks of the Alps in the south. There are many fantastic places to enjoy a hike in the great outdoors while visiting this beautiful country.

Many Germans love to hike, and hiking trails are well maintained and respected in Germany. You will find that most paths are well marked with signposts and kept clean and tidy. There are a huge variety of hiking and walking paths throughout Germany, from the easiest beginner route to the most challenging multi-day trek.

If you are going on a hiking adventure in Germany, here are some trails that are worth checking out:

The Karst Trail

Karst topography refers to geological formations which are shaped by layers of soluble bedrock dissolving as a result of subterranean drainage. These strange rocks have been marked with sinkholes and often form large caves big enough for human exploration. You can explore a remarkable karst landscape by hiking the Karst Trail, which is a marked and signed footpath running for over 250 kilometres through the wilds of the South Harz in Germany. The hiking trail will take you from Forste in Lower Saxony to Polsfeld in Saxony-Anhalt, through many amazing natural formations such as caves, sinkholes, depressions, disappearing streams, karst springs, and subterranean rivers. With so many fascinating natural phenomena to discover, you will not get bored on this hike!

The Kaiser Way

The name of this hiking trail translates to “Emperor Way” and it will take you all the way from Goslar to Tilleda. This hike is wonderful for history buffs, as it takes you along an old historic trail which was one of the few routes over the Harz Mountains in the Middle Ages. This epic 110 km long path has been forged ever since prehistoric times, and there have been archeological remains from the stone age found along route. The route was taken by the army of Pippin the Younger in 744, and was the route that Emperor Henry IV fled upon during his escape from the Saxons in 1073. The Kaiser Way is well maintained within the National Park, with signposts and wide paths, but there are some poorly maintained paths in the South Harz and Thuringia where fewer visitors are found. It is fascinating to walk this route and think of how many people have traversed it before.

The Westweg

The Westweg, or “West Trail” is a 285 kilometer long distance trail running north-south through Germany from the Black Forest to Basel, Switzerland. Founded in 1900, the trail is part of the larger network of the European Long Distance Trail E1. One of the advantages of hiking on this trail is that it will pass through several villages and small towns; so that you will not need to carry a tent and can instead stay in youth hostels or inns. This also makes it more convenient to hike sections of the trail rather than taking on the entire path. The walk will take you through some truly enchanting scenery of the Black Forest Mountains.

These are just a few of the excellent hiking trails that can be found in Germany. So what are you waiting for? Strap on your hiking boots, grab a trail map, and get out there to explore this beautiful county!