Westerwald-Steig Stage 5: Westerburg - Freilingen (East - West)

Description

Where castle dwellers lived, colourful meadow valleys proliferate and glittering water surfaces seduce.

Hidden beauties. I stroll through the narrow streets of the upper town and discover masterful half-timbered houses, such as the beautiful Burgmannenhaus, or the stained glass windows in the choir of the old castle church. In the museum of traditional costumes of yesteryear, I encounter the simple and hard life of times gone by, and I am glad that I am walking on foot out of desire and not out of necessity. My detour to the nearby Wiesensee immediately gives me holiday feelings. The lake is pure idyll! I will follow the train of fair-weather clouds in the sky and look forward to being accompanied on my hike again and again by the quiet blue of numerous ponds and lakes. The landscape now shows the charm of gentle mountain tops, extensive meadow valleys and sparse deciduous forests. A nature with a special charisma! Perhaps it is precisely because of this that numerous places of pilgrimage have developed here in the Westerwald. Not far from Westerburg, a pilgrimage church has been built in honour of the Virgin Mary. The Liebfrauenkirche puts me in a cheerful mood and I discover the beautiful interior. I will encounter a piece of heaven on earth here again and again. Heavenly beautiful, but of a completely different nature, is the Westerwald lake district. A real stroke of luck for summer visitors, bathers and nature lovers. Here I just want to drift, forget time and play in the water with my bare feet.

Please note that there are currently no refreshment stops or hotels in Freilingen! We recommend Gasthof "Zum Seeweiher" in Dreifelden (Tel. 02666/643, www.zumseeweiher.de), which is another approx. 4 km from Freilingen.If these additional kilometres are too long for you, we recommend leaving the WesterwaldSteig shortly after Himburg and following the main hiking trail II (white II on black background) to Dreifelden.

Approach

Westerwald-Steig Stage 5: Westerburg - Freilingen (EasFrom the south, west and north: via the B255 to the Westerburg exit
From the east: via the B54 to the Westerburg exit
t - West)

Public transport

Train to ICE station at Montabaur and bus no. 116 to Westerburg Jahnstraße
Train from Cologne or Limburg to the stop at Westerburg
Return journey from Freilingen to Westerburg: taxi to Westerburg or taxi to the train stop at Rotenhain and from there by train to Westerburg
www.bahn.de
www.rmv-bus.de
www.vectus-online.de

Parking

Westerburg, car park at the 'Zum Katzenstein' campsite or in the town at Burgmannenplatz square (underneath the castle), at the council chambers (Gartenstraße), ‘An der Hofwiese’ or the Park & Ride car park at the train station

Directions

The WesterwaldSteig trail first leads through meadows and pastures to Hergenroth. Here you can take a detour to the nearby Wiesensee lake, which is not directly on the WesterwaldSteig. It is 80 hectares in size and draws its great attraction from its scenic beauty. Formerly a fish farm, it is now exclusively a recreational area. The latest attraction on Lake Wiesen is the BBQ donut, an original watercraft that promises ten people a fun ride with food and drink on the water. Via the Hergenrother Kopf, the trail leads us to Brandscheid and Rothenbach to the Wölferlinger Weiher and the Westerwald lake district, a particularly charming and unique cultural landscape in the Westerwald. It spreads out as an undulating plateau between the mountain heads of the Hachenburg and Höchstenbach forests in the north to the valley of the Saynbach in the south. Seven reservoirs gave the Westerwald lake district its name. The ponds are connected to each other by canals. In the lido at the Postweiher, you can swim, go canoeing, pedal boating and surfing. We reached the stage destination shortly afterwards at the playground and hikers' car park.

Please note that there are currently no refreshment stops or hotels in Freilingen! We recommend the Gasthof "Zum Seeweiher" in Dreifelden (Tel. 02666/643, www.zumseeweiher.de), which is another approx. 4 km from Freilingen.If these additional kilometres are too long for you, we recommend leaving the WesterwaldSteig shortly after Himburg and following the main hiking trail II (white II on black background) to Dreifelden.

Access routes (marking: green W on yellow ground):

from the eastern outskirts of Westerburg to the town centre (approx. 1.2 km) and to the railway station (approx. 1.8 km) from Hergenroth to Lake Wiesen (approx. 1.9 km) from the forest near Gershasen to Westerburg railway station (approx. 2.5 km) and to the town centre (approx. 3.1 km) from the western edge of town to Rothenbach (approx. 0.2 km) from Wölferlingen to the Helleberg lookout tower (approx. 2.4 km) Loop through Freilingen (approx. 1.6 km) from the Steinen playground to Steinen (approx. 1.4 km)

Safety instructions

Wear sturdy shoes and appropriate, weatherproof clothing that protects you from cold and wet or heat and sun.Take enough liquid with you. There are not always places to stop for refreshments.Please wear walking shoes appropriate for the trail, which will give you sufficient grip even on slippery and steep or rocky and uneven paths.If you are of the opinion that certain sections of the trail are not passable for you, then you should avoid them. Especially in adverse weather conditions, muddy and slippery passages can occur on natural paths.Especially in autumn, you should also be aware that leaves lying on the ground can hide uneven surfaces, roots, stones or holes in the path. You must expect path impairments of this kind when you undertake a hike.Although the trail is very well marked throughout, you should always have a suitable hiking map with you for safety reasons.

Equipment

Hiking boots/shoes
Suitable weatherproof clothing

Tips

For small groups: leave the trail to visit the Wiesensee lake and take a trip on the BBQ Donut, an original vessel which promises up to ten people a pleasant trip on the water, with food and drink included.
For lovers of peace and quiet: enjoy your picnic lunch in the Westerwald-Steig hikers' shelter above Kölbingen.

Literature

- Wanderkarte-Leporello Westerwald-Steig, hiking map with GPS data and tips for day trips, rest stops and leisure activities, map size (w x h): 18 x 20 cm, 39 pages in total, including 29 pages of maps, ISBN 978-3-89920-461-2, €8.95 - Official WesterWaldSteig trail map for hikers and holidaymakers, 1:50 000 scale map, LVermGeo Rheinland-Pfalz, ISBN 978-3-89637-406-6, €8.50

Destination

Freilingen

Starting Point

Westerburg