Country:
District:
Start from the car park next to the Auberge du Lac d'Alfeld.
(S/E) Follow the road uphill towards the lake for a few metres. Turn right and go to the end of the dyke.
Follow the Rundkopf path via the Wasserfall marked with a red sign. Climb the winding path to the crossroads near the waterfall.
(1) Turn right onto Rundkopf (you can go left first to admire the Wasserfall waterfall, which may be dry at the end of summer, returning by the same route). Continue the ascent.
(2) Turn left, continuing to follow Rundkopf Ballon d'Alsace (Chevalet Rouge) towards the west.
(3) At the Schahling Hütte, you can admire the view of the Sewen valley and the lake. Continue up the Chevalet Rouge path to the crossroads near the ruins of the Wasserfall farm.
(4) At the crossroads, see the photo taken in 1926 in a frame fixed to a tree, then leave the Chevalet Rouge trail and turn right onto theGR®5variant, marked with a red/white/red rectangle. Head towards Col des Perches-Obere Waterfall-Neuberg.
In places, you can still see ruins and stone walls that bear witness to the pastoral activity that existed here a hundred years ago. The trail heads east and then north to meet theGR®5.
(5) Turn left onto theGR®5(red rectangle) towards Ballon d'Alsace. Continue to follow the red rectangle, passing through Col de Morteville and then Col de Ronde Tête. After a few fairly difficult sections over scree, you will reach the summit of Ballon d'Alsace, with its orientation table.
(6) Descend to the left towards the south-west, passing in front of the statue of the Virgin of the Balloon. Continue to follow the red rectangle towards Wissgrut.
(7) Turn right to reach the Ballon d'Alsace inn. (You can shorten the route by following the path that descends directly to the south).
Continue uphill, north of the inn, and follow the red rectangle and yellow disc trail. Enter the undergrowth to come out at the top of a downhill ski slope. The trail heads south along the Ballon road. Further down, near the La Chaumière inn, you will reach a crossroads of trails close to the road.
(8) Follow the red rectangle towards Gentiane-Wissgrut-Masevaux. Walk along the road, passing in front of the Jean Devillers community centre.
(9) Leave theGR®5for its variant, Red/White/Red Rectangle, to the left and Lake Alfeld. Continue to follow this path, which branches off to the left into the forest, passes north of Tête des Redoutes and begins the descent. Pass under the Redoutes ski lift, then the Grand Langenberg ski lift, and continue through the forest. As you approach the D466, the trail meets the start of the Red Triangle marked trail.
(10) Turn left onto this Red Triangle trail towards Hinter Alfeld-Sewen. You will come to the Route du Ballon coming from Sewen.
(11) Cross the road, still following the Red Triangle. (Caution: a safety barrier blocks the path; you will need to climb over it onto gravelly ground). After a series of hairpin bends and a few passages over scree slopes covered in moss, you will arrive at the junction with the Red Disc marked trail and a chicane barrier.
(12) Continue straight ahead after the barrier. Leave the forest and descend towards the road, heading towards Lac d'Alfeld and Sewen. At the road, turn left and cross the bridge.
(13) After the bridge, turn right and follow the Disque Rouge or Anneau Bleu trail. You will arrive at an intersection near the northern shore of the lake.
(14) Turn right to reach the south side of the dam, following the Blue Ring (this trail goes around the lake; if you continue straight ahead, the trail leads to the north side of the dam). After a while, the trail returns to the tarmac road and arrives at the car park where you started (S/E).
.
Visorando member
Moderate 
Local authority
Very difficult 
