Walk around the Sauer

A pleasant walk on the plains around the River Sauer. Beautiful scenery and a glimpse of traditional Alsatian architecture. This route also offers the chance to discover two typical wash houses, one made of stone, the other of wood.

Details

822022
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.29 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 2h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Easy

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 24 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 24 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 180 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 155 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the car park near the spa centre.

(S/E) Leave the car park and head back towards the D27 Route de Haguenau. Cross the road (take care, use the pedestrian crossings) and follow it to the left (north-north-east). Walk past the Beau Séjour hotel.

(1) Cross the D86 road with care (using the pedestrian crossing). Take the short cycle path and cross a car park to the left. At the end, turn right and go under a porch between the Maison des Associations and the Syndicat des Eaux. You will come out onto a paved area with two picnic tables and a drinking fountain.

(2) Turn left onto the cycle path. Cross Route de Gunstett with care and turn right onto the cycle path running alongside it on the left-hand side. At the entrance to a leisure park, the cycle path crosses Route de Gunstett (protected crossing) and then continues along the right-hand side of the road. Cross the Sauer via a wooden bridge.

(3) Turn right onto a path leading to some houses before turning left. Walk along the back of the gardens and then through a small wood. Wind your way through cultivated fields and grassy patches to reach Impasse de la Rivière. At the end, turn right onto the street and continue to the banks of the Sauer (wash house).

(4) Turn back, go past Impasse de la Rivière and turn right into Rue du Général Koenig, then turn right again until you reach a large sawmill.

(5) Continue straight on (south-east) and take the path leading away from the village of Gunstett. Pass under a high-voltage power line and cross the Sauer. At the next fork, take the left-hand path which runs alongside a wooded area on the riverbank. Continue straight on until you reach a farm.

(6) Turn right after the farm and follow a path that crosses the plain, moving away from the course of the Sauer. At the next junction, turn right (west) and follow a straight path. Cross the Bieberbach stream and continue straight on, passing the houses of the village of Durrenbach at a distance. Continue along Rue du Chemin de Fer and arrive at a crossroads (featuring a sandstone wayside shrine characteristic of Alsace).

(7) Turn right and follow the D86 road (main street). A little further on, take the cycle path that runs alongside the D86 road towards Morsbronn-les-Bains and Woerth. Continue along this cycle path, which generally heads north-west, until you reach the junction of the circular route.

(2) Turn left to go under the archway. Cross the car park to the left, then turn right towards the D27 road.

(1) Cross the D86 road with care (protected crossing). Continue south-south-west on the left-hand pavement of the D27. Cross the road with great care (protected crossings) and continue to the parking point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 179 m - Car park next to the spa centre
  2. 1 : km 0.44 - alt. 167 m - Road D27 x Road D86
  3. 2 : km 0.65 - alt. 164 m - Cycle path – Junction of the circular loop
  4. 3 : km 1.28 - alt. 163 m - Start of the path, 50m after the - Sauer (rivière)
  5. 4 : km 2.19 - alt. 160 m - Wash house
  6. 5 : km 2.8 - alt. 159 m - Grande Scierie
  7. 6 : km 4.41 - alt. 156 m - Crossroads - Farm
  8. 7 : km 5.85 - alt. 161 m - Crossroads
  9. S/E : km 8.29 - alt. 179 m - Car park next to the spa centre

Notes

Parking is available in the car park next to the spa.
Another option is the car park at the Maison des Associations near the point (2). The route is then shortened to 6.7 km.

This hike across varied terrain requires suitable footwear.

This route, which presents no real difficulties, is unmarked, although some sections follow marked paths. It is advisable to follow the directions in the description and on the map and to cross-check them against the landscape. The choice of route is the result of a journey along as many paths of all kinds as possible and sections on quiet roads (where possible).

Hike completed by the author on 24 October 2017.

Worth a visit

Morsbronn-les-Bains
History
6 August 1870, Battle of Froeschwiller-Woerth.
In the spring of 1904, a drilling operation by the Gewerkschaft Gute Hoffnung, searching for oil, discovered a hot spring at a depth of 450 metres, to the north-west, on the edge of the road from Froeschwiller leading to the village of Eberbach-Woerth and the hamlet of Lausberg. Georges Urban, a restaurateur from Morsbronn, bought the deposit and, following analyses, this reserve of hot water at 42°C was found to have beneficial properties for rheumatism as it is rich in sodium chloride and calcium.

Monuments

All Saints’ Church: Morsbronn is one of some 50 towns in Alsace with a church serving multiple congregations.
Several monuments commemorate those who died in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, including the impressive ‘Adler’ (‘Eagle’), not far from the Bouygues telephone exchange on the village heights.

Thermal spas

The thermal water of Morsbronn-les-Bains comes from two natural springs discovered in 1904 during drilling carried out to locate oil deposits in the region: the Les Cuirassiers spring at 38.9°C, drawn from a depth of 400 metres, and the Saint-Arbogast spring at 41.9°C, drawn from a depth of 670 metres.
These two catchments provide the spa with an abundant flow of naturally warm water rich in sodium chloride, calcium, magnesium and sulphur.
With their sedative, analgesic and relaxing properties, these waters are recommended for the treatment of:
- chronic and debilitating inflammatory rheumatism,
- spinal, cervical or lumbar osteoarthritis, and osteoarthritis of the hip or knee
- fibromyalgia,
- progressive polyarthritis,
- the after-effects of osteoarticular trauma.

Reviews and comments

4.1 / 5
Based on 6 reviews

Reliability of the description
4 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.3 / 5
Route interest
4 / 5
HUSS Régis
HUSS Régis

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 09, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

A pleasant and easy walk, though it runs too close to the main roads in places. The wash houses are in good condition and the scenery is interesting.

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visorebert
visorebert

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 12, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very pleasant walk through fields and woods, taking in some of the region’s historical remains.
Two magnificent wash houses provide a spot to stop for a break by the River Sauer.

Thanks to Visorando

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marionmae200911
marionmae200911

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : May 26, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The route was well marked, with no particular difficulties – a lovely walk

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pgetrochon
pgetrochon

Thank you for your message.
As for the short circular loop around the mill, this is a recent development linked to the person who owns the land around it and who seems to have decided to block the path. It’s a great shame.
As for the time, the Visorando tool recalculates all walking times to include a break every hour. That’s what accounts for the difference you’ve noticed. Everyone can easily adjust the times to suit their own walking style. Personally, a hike with not too much elevation gain, which I complete in 2½ hours, is estimated to take nearly an hour longer. But this is valuable for those who are less fit or for those who hike in terrain with steeper gradients
Enjoy your walks

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Apulée
Apulée

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 17, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely walk. Quite a lot of tarmac, though. On the other hand, the circular loop around the mill is off limits: private property. Apart from that, the accuracy of the route directions is very much appreciated, especially for occasional ‘hikers’ like us. The estimated time of 2 hours 25 minutes seems a bit exaggerated: walking at a leisurely pace, it took us 2 hours.
Thank you for your work.

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pgetrochon
pgetrochon

Thank you for your comment.
I’m sorry to hear that you found yourself unsure of the way near the sawmill. As the description states, the route goes round the mill to the right, crossing two bridges (very close together), without heading towards the fields surrounded by electric fences which are used as grazing land for animals. Then, in front of the sawmill, the route heads right onto the path leading away from the village. The rainy weather probably didn’t help you find your way or read the route description.
Happy hiking.

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guénolé
guénolé

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 26, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A pleasant walk across the plains – it’s a shame it was raining a bit. From the sawmill onwards, it wasn’t entirely clear which way to go: should we go round the front or the back? There were fields with fences and tall grass there, but there was a very beautiful wash house along the route.

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jijijcj
jijijcj

Thank you for clarifying that.
As I said, I was expecting a traditional mill.
I met a lady near the sawmill who lives in Gunstett and often walks in the area, and I asked her where the famous mill was.
Her reply was that she had no knowledge of a mill near the sawmill!

Kind regards

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pgetrochon
pgetrochon

Hello,

The mill is a building by the river where grain is ground. It is not a round mill with sails. It is a cubic, industrial-style building opposite the sawmill and opposite the houses on the other side of the large open space beyond the wash house. The mill is on the River Sauer, a short distance from the wash house towards the sawmill (it is the only building on the riverbank at this point).

Kind regards

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jijijcj
jijijcj

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 01, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

A lovely little walk around the Sauer.
A minor issue with the mill that I didn’t spot

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