Westweg
The Westweg is a long-distance hiking trail in Germany, running north–south through the Black Forest from Pforzheim to Basel. The trail is around 285 km long, and was founded in 1900. It is currently maintained under the auspices of the Black Forest Club. The trail symbol is a red lozenge on a white background.
The Westweg is a part of the European Long-distance Trail E1
The route passes through or near numerous villages or small towns, so there is no difficulty in finding overnight accommodation and meals along the route. It would actually require more planning to walk it while staying in youth hostel-type accommodation, or camping. There are a number of services that will transport your luggage to the next accommodation by vehicle, leaving the hikers with only their daypacks for the hike. The route can be accessed at several places along its length by road or public transport, so it is easy to walk part of it or to do day walks along its route.
Route Description
The Westweg begins in Pforzheim, then leads through the Enz valley to the Dobel, then through wide forests and moors to the Hohloh. After descending into the Murg valley, the trail climbs to the highest point in the northern Black Forest, the Hornisgrinde. The next section follows the Schwarzwaldhochstraße to Alexanderschanze, and then through the Kinzig valley to Hausach. After a steep climb the Westweg leads from the Martinskapelle to Kalten Herberge, the European continental divide between the Rhine and Danube rivers. At the Feldberg saddle the Westweg forks into an eastern and a western section. The western route runs over the Feldberg, Belchen, and Blauen to Kandern, then through the Wolfschlucht to the Wiese valley, and on to Basel. The eastern section branches southward to the second highest mountain in the Black Forest, the Herzogenhorn, over the pass between the Wehra and Wiese valleys, toward the Hohe Möhr, by Weil am Rhein and down the Rhine valley to Basel.History
The current Westweg was created in 1900 by the Baden Section of the Schwarzwaldverein. Proposals for the creation of a north–south hiking trail along the crest of the Black Forest go back to 1894.The Westweg, which was complemented by the Ostweg from Pforzheim to Schaffhausen and the Mittelweg from Pforzheim to Waldshut in 1903, has become the model for many other long-distance hiking trails.
On December 15, 2006 the Westweg was awarded the certification of "Qualitätsweg Wanderbares Deutschland".. In order to meet a criterion for this certification, that no more than 20% of the trail could be paved, several stretches of the trail had to be relocated or rebuilt in a more natural setting.
Dayhikes/Stages
Stages Shared by Variations A and B
First Stage: Pforzheim–Dobel
Main Variant
24 km, c. 6 hours walking time| Location/Attractions | Distance in km | Elevation in metres | Additional Information |
| Pforzheim-Kupferhammer | 0 | 254 | Starting point of the three Black Forest long-distance trails, the Westweg, Mittleweg, and the Ostweg |
| Dillweißenstein | 2.5 | 270 | |
| Schloss Neuenbürg | 9.5 | 390 | |
| Neuenbürg, Marketplace | 0.5 | 323 | |
| Buchberg, Adventure playground | 0.5 | 460 | to Neuenbürg Westweg rejoins the pre-2006 higher variation |
| Schwanner Warte | 3.0 | 480 | to Straubenhardt Glider port |
| Herzogswiesen | 1.0 | 520 | |
| Dreimarkstein | 3.5 | 660 | Shelter hut Named because of the boundary stones for the communities of Dobel, Dennach, and Conweiler. |
| Volzemer Stein | 1.5 | 660 | Boulder field |
| Dobel | 2.0 | 720 | Observation tower |
Higher Variant
In 2006 the first stage of the Westweg was relocated. The former stage is now marked as the "High Variation"| Location/Attractions | Distance in km | Elevation in Meters | Additional Information |
| Pforzheim-Kupferhammer | 0 | 254 | Starting point of the three Black Forest long-distance trails, the Westweg, Mittleweg, and the Ostweg |
| Pforzheim-Dillstein | 2.0 | 270 | |
| Sonnenberg | 1.0 | 340 | |
| Birkenfeld | 2.0 | 358 | |
| Wilhelmshöhe | 6.5 | 429 | to Neuenbürg |
| Buchberg–Adventure playground | 0.5 | 460 | to Neuenbürg Higher variation rejoins the Westweg. |
Second Stage: Dobel–Forbach
25 km, c. 6.5 hours walking time| Location/Attractions | Distance in km | Elevation in Meters | Additional Information |
| Dobel | 0 | 720 | Observation tower |
| Weithäusle | 5.0 | 823 | Shelter hut |
| Schweizerkopfhütte | 1.5 | 835 | Observation pavilion |
| Hahnenfalzhütte | 4.0 | 876 | Hut of the Bad Herrenalb ski club |
| Absetze | 1.5 | 917 | |
| Kreuzlehütte | 2.0 | 852 | |
| Hohlohturm | 2.0 | 986 | Kaiser Wilhelm-Turm observation tower, Shelter hut 500m side trip to the Hohlohsee. |
| Prinzenhütte | 1.5 | 976 | Shelter hut |
| Latschigfelsen | 2.5 | 762 | |
| Gausbach | 3.0 | 306 | Suburb of Forbach |
| Forbach | 1.0 | 303 |
Third Stage: Forbach–Unterstmatt
19 km, c. 5.5 hours walking time| Location/Attractions | Distance in km | Elevation in Meters | Additional Information |
| Forbach | 0 | 303 | |
| Auf Wegscheiden | 5.0 | 751 | |
| Herrenwieser See | 1.5 | 834 | Glacial cirque from the last glacial period, c. 9 m deep, c. 600 m circumference. |
| Bussemer Denkstein | 1.0 | 1003 | Philipp Bussemer |
| Badener Höhe | 2.0 | 1004 | Großherzog-Friedrich-Turm observation tower |
| Herrenwieser Saddle | 1.1 | 879 | |
| Sand | 2.6 | 828 | to Bühl Schwarzwaldhochstraße |
| Hundseck | 1.8 | 856 | |
| Hochkopf | 3.0 | 1041 | |
| Unterstmatt | 1.0 | 928 |
Fourth Stage: Unterstmatt–Alexanderschanze
27.5 km, c. 7 hours walking time| Location/Attractions | Distance in km | Elevation in Meters | Additional Information |
| Unterstmatt | 0 | 928 | |
| Ochsenstall | 2.0 | 1036 | Inn for skiers and hikers |
| Hornisgrinde | 1.0 | 1164 | |
| Mummelsee | 2.0 | 1034 | |
| Seibelseckle | 1.5 | 956 | |
| Darmstädter Hütte | 3.0 | 1020 | |
| Seekopf | 0.5 | 1040 | View of the Wildsee and the grave of Orientalist Julius Euting |
| Ruhestein | 2.5 | 915 | Schwarzwaldhochstraße |
| Schliffkopf | 4.0 | 1055 | - |
| Zuflucht | 7,5 | 963 | Former hotel, then a youth hostel, currently closed |
| Alexanderschanze | 3,5 | 968 | Crosses the B 28 |
Fifth Stage: Alexanderschanze–Auf der Hark
18 km, c. 4.5 hours walking timeThis stage and the next can be completed in one day by experienced hikers.
| Location/Attractions | Distance in km | Elevation in metres | Additional Information |
| Alexanderschanze | 0 | 968 | |
| Am kalten Haupt | 2.5 | 936 | |
| Hildahütte | 2.0 | 914 | |
| Lettstädter Höhe | 3.0 | 968 | |
| Lake-level above the Glaswaldsee | 1.5 | 960 | Side trip to viewpoint over the Glaswaldsee |
| Freiersbergsattel | 2.0 | 752 | Crosses the pass road Schapbach–Bad Peterstal |
| Littweger Höhe | 2.5 | 843 | Shelter hut. Crosses the Gengenbach–Alpirsbach Black Forest Trail |
| 4.5 | 700 | Farm bed and breakfast– to Oberharmersbach |
Sixth Stage: Auf der Hark–Hausach
16.5 km, c. 4 hours walking timeThis stage and the previous one can be completed in one day by experienced hikers.
| Location/Attractions | Distance in km | Elevation in Meters | Additional Information |
| Auf der Hark | 0 | 700 | |
| Kreuzsattelhütte | 3.0 | 738 | |
| Trail forks to Brandenkopf | 0.2 | 735 | Marked variant: The Brandenkopf is about 3.5 km from the Westweg. |
| Hirzwasen | 1.8 | 735 | Crosses the Great Hansjokob Path |
| Ebenacker | 2.0 | 620 | |
| Hohenlochen-Hütte | 2.5 | 689 | Simple hiker's hut |
| Käppelehof | 0.3 | 640 | Farm bed and breakfast |
| Weißes Kreuz | 0.2 | 570 | |
| Spitzfelsen | 2.0 | 580 | Schutzhütte |
| Hausach | 4.5 | 237 |