It is no secret that I like to travel around the globe to discover new things. When I started my year in Hong Kong and Macao, I thought that 2020 is going to be a record year when it comes to days and nights away. The first major trip was scheduled for March: Chile – Santiago, Valparaiso, the Atacama Desert and Patagonia. Then Covid-19 happened and the whole world pretty much came to a complete hold. Bridging this time with work (I really do like my job) has not been an option either, as my employer has been closing its doors for the past weeks. So far I used the unexpected spare time to read books and play games – but that alone cannot satisfy my thirst for new places and discoveries. Luckily, where I live, we did not have a ban to enjoy the nearby nature (which hopefully stays that way). I used the opportunity to rediscover my region: Germany’s southwest. In this post, I would like to highlight interesting and beautiful places which are totally worth a visit. As the crisis is not yet over, there might be a “part two” sooner or later.
When talking about Germany’s southwest I am referring to the federal state of Baden-Württemberg. The region is incredibly versatile and I will only cover parts of it. After all, I never went too far from home in order to avoid spreading the virus. My main focus was the capital city of the federal state, Stuttgart, and the regions south, southeast and southwest from it. From a geographic point of view, this part could be divided in: the Black Forest, the Swabian Jura and the Neckar valley with its close surroundings. I did quite a few hikes in the mentioned areas. Sure, compared to other countries, the destinations were not as high (Nepal’s Annapurna mountain range, Colombia’s Andes) and not as thrilling (Canada’s Rocky Mountains), but, first and foremost, not less beautiful.
Writing about hiking, it might seem strange to start with a city: Stuttgart. Within Germany, Stuttgart does not really have a reputation of being beautiful. And yes, while there are true architectural highlights, the city is not very consistent in its looks and also contains plenty of mediocre buildings from the time after World War II. However, it does have a lot of green areas and, being located in a valley bottom, it does have many hills. The Blaustrümpflerweg will showcase you many beautiful spots in southern and western Stuttgart. When in Stuttgart, make sure to visit the Bärenschlössle (close to the outer campus of Stuttgart’s university) and the Solitude Palace (not far from the Bärenschlössle). Both are beautiful places with plenty of nature, even though they are more suitable for a stroll than a hike.
Heading from Stuttgart towards the southeast you will soon arrive at the Swabian Jura, also called Swabian Alps. Within sight from there, you can see various mountains, one of them is the Teckberg, home to Teck Castle. The Teckberg’s stone is more stable than the one of the surroundings, making it an outlier after millions of years of erosion. The castle on top of the mountain is relatively young and simple, but quite scenic. The true highlights are the views from the top of the mountain (make sure to head to the “Gelber Fels” / “Yellow Rock”, too) as well as the beautiful forests at the mountain’s slopes (do not only use the main trail).
Heading from there to the south you will reach the Swabian Alps. The plateau itself is nice, but the hillside towards the west is the spectacular part. A great place to enjoy the view is the Dreifürstenstein mountain. There is a 13 km long, very versatile hiking trail which will not only lead you on top of the mountain itself, but also through forests and orchards. While the mountain offers many spectacular views, the view towards the famous Hohenzollern Castle might be the best one. Next to the beautiful nature, the area is very interesting in terms of history and geology, too. Until 1806, the mountain marked the border of three completely separate, independent German states. Back then, what was later known as Germany was a rag rug of uncountable kingdoms and principalities, being more or less loosely connected. It was the French emperor Napoleon who merged several local countries into the Kingdom of Wuerttemberg. Hiking the trail, you will notice the steepness of the mountain’s slopes, even seeing some scarps. Unlike the Teckberg the Swabian Alp consists mainly of chalkstone which is not very persistent, especially against water. This means that the plateau is literally on its retreat: In 1983, there was a big landslide after weeks of heavy rainfall – processes like this will not stay unique. When you are in the area and look for more things to do, consider to visit the beautiful Lichtenstein Castle. There are also some dripstone caves nearby.
Heading from the Swabian Alps to the west you will soon reach the Neckar valley and its close surroundings. The landscape is characterized by many hills, vast agricultural areas and many, small forest areas. Some of the hills offer great views into all directions, e.g. the Wurmling Chapel, which is located close to the beautiful cities of Tübingen and Rottenburg. The local vineyards and forest areas certainly invite for a stroll or a hike. Not far from there, you will find the Schönbuch, a comparably big forest area. Especially its slopes invite for hikes with spectacular views. One great trail is the so-called Schönbuchspitzrunde. The starting point is not far from the city of Herrenberg which has a beautiful market place, an interesting church and, also up in the Schönbuch area, an architecturally remarkable observation tower called Schönbuch Turm.
Following the Neckar valley north, you will sooner or later arrive at the area where this post started, Stuttgart and its surroundings. Following it to the south, you will find a hidden gem that I was unaware of until just a couple of days ago: the Schlichemklamm. The Schlichem is a small river which flows into the bigger Neckar. Parts of it go through a small ravine, making a hike there a magnificent experience of nature.
We looked into many highlights of southwest Germany and yet we did not cover the area which surely is the most famous one on an international level: the Black Forest. First and foremost, the Black Forest is a large area and it is impossible to cover all of its highlights and hiking opportunities within just a couple of days. Most certainly, it will be one of my favorite destinations for the lock-down days to come. So far, I did visit the stunning Mummelsee and its nearby mountain, the Hornisgrinde. With 1,163 meters in elevation, Hornisgrinde is the highest mountain in the northern part of Black Forest. If the sight is good, the views of Black Forest and the nearby Rhine valley are breathtaking. That attribute applies to all of the Schwarzwald Hochstraße (“Black Forest high road”). While it cannot compete with Alberta’s Icefields Parkway, it most certainly is worth a drive. Not too far from there, you can find the Schwarzenbach Dam, a massive dam which was completed in 1926. It is not only very interesting from an architectural and technical point of view, its big reservoir offers perfect hiking opportunities. The nearby Murg valley is quite picturesque, too.
On a closing note, it might not be possible for you to visit all of the mentioned places right now. However, I am sure that the region you call home offers plenty of great discovery opportunities, too. Go and explore them, take pictures, post them on the internet and help curios people finding unbeaten trails.
@sebel_tours 
Echt interessant, vielen Dank für den Bericht, insb. für die verlinkten Wanderwege!
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[…] again deal with my home region: Germany’s southwest – the rediscovery of home. Missed part one? Read it here. Again, I will link as much information and hiking trails as possible in order to help you with […]
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