Loop around Ottrott and Saint-Nabor

This loop starts in Ottrott-le-Haut and passes by the castles of Ottrott, the Elsberg shelter and the Hohenburgerberg, returning to Ottrott via the Compostela pilgrims' trail.

Details

915502
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.74 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 40 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 396 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 396 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 709 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 308 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Park on the heights of Ottrott-le-Haut. To get there, take Rue des Châteaux. Pass L'Ami Fritz, then the Relais des Châteaux and cross the forest to reach the Herrenberg car park.

(S/E) From the car park, go back about 100 m to start the hike.

(1) Find a path on the right marked with a red-white-red rectangle towards the Ottrott castles. Follow this path to the Ottrott castles.

(2) Turn left, pass south of the forest house and continue for 250 m, following the previous signs. You will reach the Sentier des Chasseurs crossroads.

(3) Turn right, then follow a hairpin bend to the left to reach the Refuge de l'Elsberg.

(4) Continue along this path until you reach another fork.

(5) Follow the Chevalet Bleu trail to the left. Keep heading south until you reach Hohenburgerberg.

(6) The descent begins here: follow the yellow triangle markings. After about 500 m, take a hairpin bend to the right. Descend to the Pilgrims' Path.

(7) Take the Sentier des Pèlerins (Pilgrims' Trail) on the far left (marked with a yellow cross).

(8) At the Saint-Nabor quarry, in a hairpin bend on the right, continue straight ahead on the path. Cross a track (cross) and continue north (yellow cross markings).

(9) Turn right at another cross and head towards Ottrott-le-Haut (marked with a yellow cross). Just before the Relais des Châteaux park, take the small path on the left until you reach Rue des Châteaux.

(10) Go up Rue des Châteaux on the left until you reach the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 328 m - Herrenberg car park - Ottrott
  2. 1 : km 0.11 - alt. 333 m - Crossroads of the loop
  3. 2 : km 1.69 - alt. 480 m - Ottrott castles
  4. 3 : km 1.97 - alt. 491 m - Start of the trail to Elsberg
  5. 4 : km 3.34 - alt. 667 m - Elsberg and its shelter
  6. 5 : km 3.67 - alt. 687 m - Blue signposted trail
  7. 6 : km 4.18 - alt. 709 m - Hohenburgerberg
  8. 7 : km 5.71 - alt. 590 m - Pilgrims' path. Yellow cross - Mont Sainte-Odile
  9. 8 : km 6.72 - alt. 482 m - Hairpin bend. Yellow cross
  10. 9 : km 7.5 - alt. 395 m - Fork in the road. Yellow cross
  11. 10 : km 8.28 - alt. 308 m - Rue des Châteaux - Ottrott
  12. S/E : km 8.74 - alt. 328 m - Ottrott - Herrenberg car park

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 43 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.4 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.5 / 5
Cube 5
Cube 5

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 21, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A pleasant hike without any major difficulties. Two magnificent views along the route

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Zielinsky
Zielinsky

Thank you very much for your quick response. And also for your advice regarding advertising along the trails!
I really want to keep my trust and enjoyment of Visorando: I hope that I have given you some useful advice, and above all, advice that will last!
Kind regards, JZ

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lemarcheur65
lemarcheur65 ★

Hello Zielinsky
Thank you for your comments.
Description updated. WPS added.
Regarding Crédit Mutuel, you should contact the town hall.
When an event (tagged) is over, the tags must be removed, which is the responsibility of the organisers.

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Zielinsky
Zielinsky
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 26, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Two points to add to my comment:
- In point 4, it is not "blue cross" but "blue horse". Learn the nomenclature of beacon figures: https://montagnetrekking.fr/balisage-clu...
Rectangle - Diamond - Rectangle with a white bar - Triangle - Straight cross - Trestle - Disc - Ring. You don't necessarily look any dumber when you want to be precise. It's just a little more tiring, but it's as good for the mind as hiking is for the body...
- CREDIT MUTUEL would do well to remove its adverts from the tracks and paths once the festivities are over...

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Zielinsky
Zielinsky
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 24, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Errare humanum est...
Visorando, a cooperative website, invites every hiker to comment on their latest outing: "Please focus your comments on the quality of the description and the route." One might therefore assume that Visorando, in its quest for accuracy, takes care to check with the authors of descriptions for any errors, omissions, etc. reported by users, and to correct them.
Alas ... perseverare diabolicum!
The " Boucle autour d'Ottrott et de Saint-Nabor " was published on 1 January 2018.
On 1 July 2018, 'mariom' reported: " there is an error in the description of the start of the hike. The description says:
"(S/E) From the car park, go back about 100 metres to start the hike. Find a path that branches off to the left with red-white-red rectangles towards the Ottrott castles. Follow this path to the Ottrott castles."
The markers are on the left side of the road, but you need to take the path to the RIGHT (when coming from the car park), opposite, on the other side of the road from the signs.  "
On 9 July 2018, 'JC_66' made the same comment.
On 20 August 2018, 'kate67' made the same comment.
On 28 October 2019, 'jp burnet' said the same thing.
On 26 July 2020, 'ManueGam' said: " As many have already said, the hike starts on the right, not the left, from the car park. "
On 26 October 2020, 'jeffo67': " A small error at the beginning of the description: you have to turn right, not left. "
But:
... I'm not even mentioning the other useful information provided by users on other points along the route, which would certainly not detract from the author's literary merits if taken into account...
So, VISORANDO?
Of course, hiking should remain an adventure. But then, what's the point of all this preaching "Please... etc."? To look SERIOUS?
Just write at the top of EVERY description: "Please read the comments" (which is... proven...)

That said, have a great trip!

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sosomarine
sosomarine

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 18, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A simple and beautiful loop trail. There is no spectacular view at the summit, but I believe a much longer loop would be necessary to achieve that. Perhaps in the direction of Mont Saint Odile. Otherwise, enjoy the walk and the lovely Ottrot Castle. Mont Saint Odile can be reached by adding an additional two hours of walking

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helenek
helenek

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 28, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Beautiful hike

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Crezancy
Crezancy

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 26, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A fairly easy walk with breathtaking views. I recommend it

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Angil
Angil

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Sporty but not difficult.
Well signposted.
Very pleasant and well-maintained route.
It's well worth parking in Ottrott, where you can enjoy wine tastings.

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MARTMICH
MARTMICH

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 27, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful walk to enjoy with family or friends. The climb is very scenic and the Elsberg shelter is perfect for meditation, especially for couples. For the descent, we took the "sentier des merveilles" (path of wonders), which is absolutely extraordinary, then headed back to Mont Saint Odile and took the path back down...
The route is pleasant and easy for everyone.

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Nine 68
Nine 68

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 10, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

After a steep climb, the Elsberg shelter was a welcome sight... the only beautiful viewpoint. The descent is indeed the least attractive part. We missed the trail of wonders by following the yellow triangle.... The trail is well-travelled but not "very"....

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Phil+Val
Phil+Val
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 26, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Superb view from the Elsberg shelter (the description says "refuge", but it is actually a shelter with a table and bench).
The Ottrott castles can be visited on Tuesday mornings and Saturdays during the day when the Friends of Ottrott Castles association is present. Feel free to ask for information; the association members will be happy to answer your questions and give you a brief overview of these two castles. You can also purchase a book recounting their history.

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highlander
highlander

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 24, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

Nice hike 👍.

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CM67
CM67

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 18, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very pleasant forest hike in very hot weather

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Oderfang
Oderfang

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 08, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We rejoined the trail at Mont Ste Odile, where we were staying, and as we wanted more, we extended our walk to Ottrott le Bas, just to stroll around this charming village... a total of 17.5 km. A very nice walk. In Ottrott, don't miss a visit to the magnificent Windeck Park: majestic trees!

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