Traumschleife Hahnenbachtaltour (Dream loop Hahnenbachtal tour)

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Car park at the Herrenberg visitor mine at 55626 Bundenbach

The hike can be started from several places: Visitors' car park at Herrenberg Visitors' Mine (located directly along the trail), Wacholderheide leisure centre near Woppenroth, hiker's car park in Schneppenbach.From the starting point at the visitor car park, we first follow our markings and the Soonwald-Steig trail to the Herrenberg visitor mine and the fossil museum. For the little hikers, the playground at the visitors' mine is very attractive. The trail continues uphill past the reconstructed Celtic settlement of Altburg for about 500 m, before we hike from the highest point of the route down to the Hahnenbach. The Sinsenbach slate dump is evidence of the mining tradition in the Hahnenbach valley. From there we have a wonderful view of the valley meadows and can enjoy the silence of the landscape before a path leads us right into the Rennwald forest. After a short distance we reach the footbridge over the Hahnenbach. Then we walk upstream along the edge of the forest before the short climb to the ruins of Hellkirch begins. The ruins of Hellkirch are situated on a hilltop about 60 m above the valley. From there we enjoy the view of the Hahnenbach valley and a part of the path already covered. A seating area invites us to take a break. Whether the ruin served as a church centuries ago or as a lookout point has not yet been extensively researched.A steep path now leads us down the narrow ridge for about 300 m. We now follow the natural forest path towards Schmidtburg Castle. Boundary stones from the 19th century bear witness to the former importance of the path: GO = Grand Duchy of Oldenburg, KP = Kingdom of Prussia. Today the borders of the districts of Rhine-Hunsrück, Bad Kreuznach and Birkenfeld meet here.After crossing a small stream we reach the water adventure trail Hahnenbachtal. We follow this path past the former grinding mill Göttenau and the "Devil's Slide" to the ruins of the mighty Schmidtburg, which already served as a hiding place for the robber captain Schinderhannes. The Schmidtburg was once one of the oldest and most important castle complexes in the Hunsrück-Nahe region. Visits are free all year round. From the castle we enjoy the views of the valley of the millennia, as the Hahnenbach Valley is also called in this section.From the Schmidtburg we hike down to the Hahnenbach. Down the stream we cross a bridge to the other side of the stream and reach the Forellenhof Reinhartsmühle. The path leads us uphill in serpentines. We hike through rock tunnels, which were once used to transport slate and enjoy several delightful views of the mighty Schmidtburg and the Altburg Castle above. After a short ascent we are back at the start. Don't miss the short ascent to "Dickheck", just to the right of the hiking trail. From here you can enjoy another fantastic view of the valley and its sights.