Circular route from Sclhossberg and Wuestenberg to Schweizerberg and Seebfels.

The Saverne State Forest has many unusual and mysterious places to offer, and this beautiful hike through the undergrowth is a fine example.
Pass through the ruins of the Ochsenstein castles (the Grand, the Petit and Wachelheim), along the pretty Schlossberg ridge path to the Krappenfels Rock viewpoint. Further on, the Wuesterberg ridge path leads to the Mur Païen and the Pierre des Druides, the remains of an ancient Celtic place of worship.
After these few bumps, it's easier going to reach the Schweizerberg plateau and the Neubaufels gazebo, finally arriving at the enormous fractured rock of the Seebfels.

Please note: the summit of the Ochsenstein castles is now closed to the public.

Details

55339660
Creation:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 13.63 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 5h 10 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 448 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 447 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 573 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 246 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Take the forest road to the Haberacker crossroads and park in the car park.

(S/E) Head towards the Haberacker forest house via the forest road of the same name. After about 250 m, take the forest path on the right after the forest house.

Blue RectangleGR®®531

(1) Follow the forest path in the quiet zone, climbing towards "Ochsenstein Wuestenberg" to reach the Grand Ochsenstein.

(2) Follow the ridge trail passing by the two other Ochsenstein castles, between sandstone blocks, ferns and foxgloves; pass the viewpoint on the left with a view of the Rocher de Dabo. Reach the highest point of the Schlossberg.

(3) The trail descends to the Krappenfels Pass: a multi-directional crossroads.

(4) Head towards "Krappenfels, Mur Païen, Wuestenberg" by taking the path opposite that climbs and winds its way up from the foot of the enormous Krappenfels Rock. At the top: beautiful 360° view and view of the Dabo Rock (bench).

(5) Follow the pretty Wuestenberg ridge trail, which leads to an ancient Celtic place of worship: Mur Païen and Pierre des Druides (with cup marks).

(6) Begin your descent to the foot of the rocky ridge via the shaded forest path that winds its way down to the Chemin Forestier du Schlossberg.

No signposts

(7) Leave the GR®531. Continue along this wide, easy forest path. Reach the intersection with the Stambach Forest Road in Reinhardsmunster.
Continue along the forest road for about 500 m until you reach the "Maison Forestière Baerenbach", a multi-directional crossroads.

Red triangle

(8) Take the Sentier Forestier des Pionniers (Pioneers' Forest Trail) on the left, which climbs slightly. After 1.7 km, pass the sandstone stele of the Pioneers of 1895.

No markings

(9) Leave the Sentier Forestier des Pionniers and take the forest path that climbs to the right. Walk uphill for about 200 m and, at the crossroads at the end of the bend, take the path on the left.
Continue along the forest track for about 600 m and, on the right at the foot of a rock, take a steep path marked with a blue ring.

Anneau Bleu

(10) Follow this path, which winds from the foot of a huge rock to its summit (bench and viewpoint). Continue along the path to reach the upper forest track. Continue along this forest track to the right, slightly uphill and around a bend.

(11) At the end of the curve, take the forest path on the left. The path winds its way between ferns and foxgloves to reach the pretty site of the Neubaufels gazebo (picnic area with benches and viewpoint).
After the gazebo and viewpoint, take the path on the right that descends between the rocks to reach the upper forest path. Follow it to the right to reach the crossroads with the path marked "Seebfels".

(12) Take this narrow forest path that winds between ferns and foxgloves on the rocky ridge to reach the summit of the enormous Seebfels Rock, which is split into two parts connected by a wooden bridge (benches).

(13) Return to the foot of the rock and continue along the forest path. Reach the forest path that leads straight to the Carrefour de la Seeb.

Red triangle

(14) Take the forest road on the left towards "Haberacker" and return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 482 m - Car park at the Haberacker crossroads.
  2. 1 : km 0.27 - alt. 471 m - "Ochsenstein Wustenberg" fork - Maison forestière Haberacker
  3. 2 : km 1.08 - alt. 557 m - Ruins of - Schlossberg (Rheinhardsmunster)
  4. 3 : km 1.63 - alt. 572 m - The Schlossberg
  5. 4 : km 2.37 - alt. 490 m - Col du Krappenfels (490m)
  6. 5 : km 2.62 - alt. 531 m - Krappenfels viewpoint.
  7. 6 : km 3.18 - alt. 520 m - Druids' cup-marked stone
  8. 7 : km 4.62 - alt. 363 m - Junction with the Schlossberg forest path.
  9. 8 : km 7.36 - alt. 256 m - MF Baerenbach
  10. 9 : km 9.99 - alt. 415 m - Unmarked fork in the path.
  11. 10 : km 10.73 - alt. 463 m - Blue Ring fork
  12. 11 : km 11.07 - alt. 511 m - Fork in the road towards Neubaufels gazebo
  13. 12 : km 11.68 - alt. 464 m - Seebfels fork - Col du Rudersberg (464m)
  14. 13 : km 12.09 - alt. 496 m - Summit of the Seebfels rock
  15. 14 : km 12.33 - alt. 467 m - Seeb crossroads.
  16. S/E : km 13.63 - alt. 482 m - Car park at the Haberacker crossroads.

Notes

Rock shelters: "Ochsenstein castles" and "Seebfels".

Shelter: "Neubaufels gazebo".

Baerenbach stream.

Worth a visit

The Ochsenstein castle ruins: the upper dwellings and belvederes are no longer accessible.

Near other routes: Brotschberg and Geroldseck castle ruins; and the Spill, Geissfels and Schoenfels rocks.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 4 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.8 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4 / 5
Taschko
Taschko

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 02, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

The route is of very uneven interest, but it is undoubtedly not easy to connect all the points of interest. There are some truly magical places, especially at the beginning of the route, the castles (which are closed to the public but still impressive) and viewpoints with 360° views. Unfortunately, the route then follows a wide forest road for several kilometres, which takes away much of the interest of the walk. So I would say that the beginning is very beautiful and, at a pinch, a short round trip to the first viewpoint would make for a very nice little walk.
Thank you for the suggestion, which was very easy to follow.

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Helmbacher Michel
Helmbacher Michel

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 03, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No


Hello, everyone!
Having decided at the last minute to go for a walk last Sunday, after waking up rather late, and without much logistical or even documentary preparation, except for a quick download from the Visorando website, we were lucky enough to discover and enjoy a superb route in the Saverne national forest, starting from the Haberacker forest house. It just goes to show that good things can sometimes come together quickly...
It would obviously be an exaggeration to say that we hit the jackpot, but our little walking adventure that day was worth its weight in gold, crowned by autumn colours that would make Canada's so-called Indian summer pale in comparison.
And to tell you a little more quickly, before offering you the link to a slideshow below: aerial visits to Ochsenstein Castle, crossing the sandstone plateau of Schlossberg first, then the Wuestenberg-Krappenfelsen, where the vegetation is lucky enough to grow freely, according to its own rules, before completing the circular route with the ascent of the Schweizerberg, where the slow agony of the setting sun set the vegetation ablaze while spilling its last drops of blood on the western slopes...
Enjoy the walk in front of your screen, before possibly heading out into the field...
Michel Helmbacher
03/11/2024 Hike MF Haberacker/Ch. Ochsenstein/Schlossberg/Wuestenberg/Schweizerberg "Google Photos"
https://photos.app.goo.gl/J8xgGkw2isgxjp...

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agnes67640
agnes67640

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful, shaded hike, quite technical in places where you have to climb over rocks. Best avoided in rainy weather.

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Haief67
Haief67

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 07, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

Discovered this circular route this morning. The first part is simply incredible. Slight elevation gain, accessible to inexperienced hikers.
The rest of the walk was a big disappointment, as we walked several kilometres along a forest track. Not very interesting.
The end made up for this disappointment a little with some magnificent rocks where we stopped for lunch.
I would still recommend it.

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