Hauingen Soormattbach Rechberg

Car park at the rear of the Hauingen village hall (municipality of Lörrach) at Brückenstrasse 3, between the village hall and the football pitch.

(S/E) Opposite the village hall, head left, then turn right onto Brückenstrasse twice. Cross Unterdorfstrasse carefully, pass St Nicholas’s Church (see the“Places to see” sectionbelow) and take the path running alongside the Soormattbach stream. First crossing of the stream before the cemetery: first turn right then left, pass between the cemetery and the residential area, then continue along the stream and follow the Soormattbach retention basin. Arrive at Soormattweg.

(1) Take the path marked with a Yellow Diamond on the left towards the Schützenhaus. Cross the stream for the second time. Keep to the right on this marked path. At the signpost for “Jungholtzweg”, at the junction with a tree and a bench, head towards the Schützenhaus on the right. Please note, there is a restaurant (Schützenhaus, open from 4 pm) and the shooting club’s premises at the end of the street, so there may be some traffic. Cross the Soormattbach stream again and follow the path marked with a Yellow Diamond. Just before the Schützenhaus, cross the stream again.

(2) Walk past the restaurant, ignoring the two paths on the left. The tarmac road ends here. At the ponds, continue along the marked path to the right. Cross the stream. Ignore the two paths on the right. Cross the stream and continue straight ahead. You’ll reach the “Roteiche” picnic and barbecue area. Stay on the marked path to the right, pass under the power lines, and arrive at the “Obere Soormatt” junction.

(3) Head towards Weiermatthütte, to the right. Stay on the marked path. Ignore the two paths on the right. Pass by the Weihermatthütte shelter, followed by the signpost “Weihermatthütte”. Here, leave the course of the Soormattbach stream, which rises 1.5 km further north.

(4) Turn right at a sharp angle; go round the back of the shelter. Stay on this wide marked path, ignoring all the tracks on either side, until you reach Rechberg.

(5) In the centre of the hamlet, take the path on the left, still marked with a Yellow Diamond. Continue left, skirting the forest.

(6) Turn right, towards Hauingen Dornhalde. Follow this marked path until you reach the edge of the forest.

(7) Stay on the marked path towards Hauingen, straight ahead. Ignore all the paths on either side. At the fork before the high-voltage power lines, take the left-hand branch, which is marked, and head straight down towards the village.

(8) Turn left and follow Rechbergerstrasse to the end. At the fountain, turn right onto Steinenstrasse, then left onto Ziegelgässle. At the end of the street, take the path on the right to reach the car park (S/E).

In most German villages, the speed limit is 30 km/h (signposted) and there are speed cameras everywhere.

St Nicholas’ Church: the bell tower was built in 1469. It is open and can be visited every day from 8 am to 8 pm.

The 5 km-longSoormattbach stream, which we will have crossed nine times during this walk, rises in the Röttler Wald and flows into the Wiese south of Hauingen. Since the construction of the flood retention basin in 2021–22, flooding has been contained; however, the nearby footpaths and cycle paths may still be flooded. Image of the 2014 flood: https://www.badische-zeitung.de/hauingen-wartet-auf-den-hochwasserschutz

In Rechberg ( municipality of Lörrach), visit the charming Café Hygge (open Wed–Sat, 10am–5pm and every other Sunday) https://www.cafehygge.de/