Quartzite Trail

(!) Please note that, following various reports, it appears that this hike is temporarily unavailable due to:

- works in the town of Sierck,

- temporary closure of the return route due to a fungus attacking the trees.

An update will be published once the path is accessible again.

This hike offers magnificent views of the Moselle valley, the Stromberg and Sierck Castle.

Details

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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 12.09 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 05 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 229 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 228 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 324 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 147 m
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ District: Montenach (57480)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 49.421446° / E 6.381705°
  • Accessible from the train station Gare de Sierck-les-Bains.
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Description of the walk

The walk starts in the village of Montenach; the car park is on Rue des Ponts on the left.
Follow the yellow rectangles.
(S/E) Cross the village of Montenach and turn right to go up the road to Sierck until you reach the D956.
Turn left and cross the bridge.

(1) After the bridge, take the forest road on the right and follow it until you reach the heights of the Sierck region.

(2) As you leave the forest, turn right onto the path crossing the fields, then follow the small country road on the right towards the hamlet of Koenigsberg.

(3) Drive through this hamlet with its magnificent houses. At the crossroads, turn right onto the forest road and continue straight ahead.

(4) When you reach the antenna, take the path on the right leading into the forest. At elevation 283, turn left and continue until you reach the junction with the Alterberg path.

(5) Take the road on the right that descends past a secondary school.

(6) At the intersection, turn left and continue to follow the yellow rectangle along Rue de Bellevue. Take the first street on the right and head downhill towards the post office.
At the post office, follow the D654 to the right for about 20 metres, then take Rue de la Tour d'Horloge, also on the right.
Pass the town hall on your left and take Rue du Cardinal Billot on your right.

(7) At the signpost behind Sierck Castle, go straight ahead up Rue du Cardinal Billot, then turn left onto Rue de Marienfloss, which continues along a forest path.

(8) Do not cross the stream, but follow the forest path that runs alongside it, lined with strange quartzite rocks.
Information panels are placed along the stream to help you understand the quartzite and the surrounding natural environment.
After leaving the stream and climbing the steps along the forest path, join the D956.

(9) Follow it to the left, then turn right. Follow the GR®5 (white and red markings) which turns right towards Montenach. Cross the village and return to the starting point (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 205 m - Parking Rue des Ponts
  2. 1 : km 0.82 - alt. 194 m - Bridge
  3. 2 : km 2.13 - alt. 279 m - Edge of the forest
  4. 3 : km 3.68 - alt. 300 m - Hamlet of Koenigsberg
  5. 4 : km 5.17 - alt. 319 m - Telecom antenna
  6. 5 : km 6.63 - alt. 263 m - Chemin de l'Alterberg
  7. 6 : km 7.2 - alt. 207 m - Sierck Castle
  8. 7 : km 8.34 - alt. 165 m - Directional sign - Moselle (la)
  9. 8 : km 8.9 - alt. 160 m - Montenach stream
  10. 9 : km 10.07 - alt. 230 m - Junction with the D956
  11. S/E : km 12.09 - alt. 206 m - Parking Rue des Ponts

Notes

Please wear suitable footwear and bring appropriate equipment.
There are no water refill points along the route, so bring what you need.

From (6, for those wishing to shorten the hike, it is possible to go directly to (7): by passing behind Sierck Castle via the Chemin des Glacis.

Worth a visit

Visit the villages of Montenach and Sierck.
Sierck Castle.
Banks of the Moselle.

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

4.7 / 5
Based on 21 reviews

Reliability of the description
5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.8 / 5
Route interest
4.4 / 5
User 7475361

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 02, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

The end of the route is very difficult. I strongly advise you to cross the bridge as indicated on the signposts and not follow the Visorando directions. You will have to cross the stream with your feet in the water. There is no other way. Then further up, when you return to the road, you have to climb up into a field and there you will be lost and tend to return to the road. You must go straight up as indicated and do not hesitate to enter the woods. The path is a few metres further on. Apart from that, allow 3½ hours with the setbacks and 3 hours if you avoid the problems.

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rose54
rose54

Overall rating : 3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 03, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★☆☆☆☆ Very disappointing
Very busy route : No

The description of the landscapes made me want to follow this route. The reality was quite different:
the most interesting part of the hike, the stream running through the quartzite area,
was impassable because it was closed off! A fungus had infected most of the ash trees,
were likely to fall at any moment.
The visit to the town of Sierck-les-Bains was also prohibited due to the complete renovation
of the streets in the medieval town centre, making it inaccessible.

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Manu57120
Manu57120

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 09, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very beautiful hike with a superb crossing of Sierck-les-Bains. The only downside is at marker 7, where it is impossible to pass behind the castle as the road is blocked due to roadworks. Take a small lane on the left with steps before the roadworks, then turn right at the bottom, follow the stream and cross the bridge to find the yellow rectangle signpost

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catwoman
catwoman

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 28, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We were delighted with this hike and pleasantly surprised by the signposting along the route.
I would like to thank Visiorando for the accurate information provided (travel time, difficulty, etc.)
the diversity of the route is also exceptional, which makes these 12 km easy to complete.

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Manternach
Manternach

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 28, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful route, very well maintained, varied landscapes. We recommend this hike

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Théotihouac
Théotihouac
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 20, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely route from start to finish, with a beautiful path along the stream at the beginning, followed by pretty crossings through fields, and finally a pleasant stretch along the Moselle to finish.

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gerard.michel0908@orange.fr
gerard.michel0908@orange.fr

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 30, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

two small variations to the route:
- we left Sierck and followed the signs to the Montenach stream (I recommend a short detour to the Marienfloss chapel: 450 m there and back). This allowed us to have a picnic at the nature centre (with outdoor tables and a refreshment bar)
- on the way back to Sierck, due to the intense heat, we avoided much of the climb up to the plateau and Koenigsberg farm by staying halfway up the slope in the forest (there are numerous paths) which then rejoin the yellow trail via the old town
Distance covered: 11.8 km with 3½ hours of walking
A very pretty route with several points of interest (the town and castle of Sierck, the Marienfloss chapel, the Montenach nature reserve trail)

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MAJOR68
MAJOR68

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 15, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very diverse landscapes, no major difficulties

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Dominique Arcade
Dominique Arcade

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 20, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very pretty route, very varied, with clear signposting. A great time with friends

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gillou56
gillou56

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : May 17, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful hike - Impeccable signage - Varied route: forest, fields, interesting crossing of Sierck via Rue de l'Horloge, stream and, of course, quartzite. Highly recommended hike

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Frantz57
Frantz57

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 01, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

I have already commented on this beautiful hike! We have just done it again.
FYI... Once you arrive in Sierck Les Bains, you can reach the banks of the Moselle via underground passages. This adds even more charm to the hike.

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Frantz57
Frantz57
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 09, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A beautiful hike alternating between woods and meadows. The magnificent Montenach stream in an autumn forest ablaze with colour. We can't wait for spring... we'll be back!

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annick karmann
annick karmann

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 17, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A varied and very well signposted route, well done and thank you!

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kiki70
kiki70

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 19, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

great hike, very varied landscape with a visit to Sierck. Beautiful end to the hike by the stream

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Alain5757
Alain5757

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 02, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike that we promised ourselves we would do again in summer when the sun is shining.
What's more, the signposting on the ground is exceptional: there are yellow rectangles everywhere!!!

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