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| Youth Hostel ahead! |
A long weekend, a fair weather forecast and a husband away on a guy outing made for a great recipe for another solo project. This time I opted for the Palatinate ridge trail (Pfälzer Höhenweg), with 112 km (70 mi) and 3300 m (10800 ft) in elevation doable in 3 to 4 days.
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| Breakfast buffet at youth hotel |
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| Way marker |
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| Castle New Wolfstein |
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| Castle Old Wolfstein |
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View back on Wolfstein
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My little walk-about began in Wolfstein where, contrary to the youth hostels' reputation, I had a very quiet and pleasant stay with a view plus an excellent breakfast. While ascending I left two castle ruins overlooking the sleepy town behind. When I entered the forest I was welcomed by the enthusiastic chirping of birds. Other than that it was quiet, and I had it all to myself.
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| Blaue Halde - spring |
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| Lauterecken |
In the town of Lauterecken I stopped for a lunch break at the river Glan, before climbing the next hill. The Palatinate 'meseta' made for a hard walk on farm roads, there was no shade, no shelter and not even a seating for the next several miles until I reached Meisenheim, a picturesque village but very touristy. Soon countless uneven steps took me back into the hills, where I found the perfect spot for my tent.
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| A long road walk |
I rose early and felt rested. First mission today had to be water resupply but the next village Callbach did not even offer a working fountain, and this early I could not ask anyone. Well, next town was a mere 8 km away. When I arrived in Obermoschel after another hard walk on rocks and rubble I was parched but I found a bakery, had breakfast, filled up my water bottles and even got power for my mobile phone.
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| Moschellandsburg |
Another ascent lead me to Moschellandsburg, a castle ruin from the 12th century, and along a vineyard. It was colder than anticipated, and I was exposed to strong crosswinds while continuing my hike over the next ridge. Then it started to rain.
When I came to a neat little hut near a farm house I could not believe what I saw: a self-service station for hikers, with a fridge full of beverages, fresh water, a water kettle for coffee or tea, little snacks, and several power outlets for mobile devices. I spent almost two hours in this hiker's paradise, just to get a break from the high winds.
With renewed motivation I moved on. After several more pointless ups and downs I came across a shelter with a perfect view, and decided to stay for the night, and pitched my tent inside, so protected from the weather. |
| Menhir from unknown origin |
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| Dusk |
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| Dawn |
The next day lead me along Roman remains, through more farmland and forest, I passed another town with resupply options and finally reached the Donnersberg region. A bit bored I decided to skip the next 10 km of road walk and took public transit to Winnweiler to continue my treck from there. A good decision because from there the hike got better: single trails, historic mining sites, enough seating and shelters for breaks, Celtic remains, excellent views and a rustic tavern for a great (culinary) finale.  |
| Eremitage from the 15th century |
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| Old iron mining site |
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| Mouth of mining shaft |
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| Reconstructed Celtic ring wall |
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| SWR radio tower |
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| Ludwig watch tower |
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| Königstuhl ex US military grounds |
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| View from Königstuhl summit |
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| Adlerbogen - Eagle arch |
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| Inn Pfalzblick |
Although the Palatinate ridge trail came down to walking on hard surface for miles on end with only a small portion of single tracks for relief, it had offered me solitude and tranquility, and a well deserved (imho) rest from real life's buzz.
