Fischboedle Lake and Shiessroth Lake in Metzeral

A magnificent walk along the Wormsabach stream and its waterfalls.

Technical sheet

5380242
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 10.50 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 15 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Return to departure point: Yes
  • ↗
    Vertical gain: + 439 m
  • ↘
    Vertical drop: - 439 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 933 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 488 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Car park along the Grande Fecht in Steinabruck, Rue de Mittlach.

(S/E) Cross the Grande Fecht and go to the fork after the campsite.

(1) Turn left onto Rue de l'Altenhof, along the river, and ignore the first path on the left.

(2) At the second path, turn left, cross the Wormsabach to join theGR®5Red Rectangle trail, which you will follow to Lake Schiessroth.

(3) Cross several footbridges over the Wormsabach stream and admire the waterfalls.

(4) You can take a break at Lac du Fischboedle. Then take the red rectangle trail again to reach Lac du Schiessrothried.

(5) Continue to the right. You can walk along the eastern shore and return. Leave the dyke and head south on the red/white/red rectangle path. After more than 2 km, it turns left. Ignore the red triangle marked trail on the right and arrive at the Sillackerwasen car park.

(6) Continue east along the beautiful Red/White/Red Rectangle road. Stay on this road, ignoring the numerous turnings on the right and left, until you reach a fork in the road before the Pfeiferberg farm.

(7) Immediately afterwards, continue on the path to the left. Head south and you will come to Rue du Sillacker. Cross the village of Altenhof. Turn right onto Rue d'Altenhof and you will come to the fork in the road you took on the way there.

(1) Turn left and return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 494 m - Car park. Rue de Mittlach in Steinabruck - Source de la Fecht
  2. 1 : km 0.15 - alt. 497 m - Crossroads of the loop
  3. 2 : km 1.38 - alt. 549 m - To the left, towards the GR5
  4. 3 : km 3.01 - alt. 707 m - Magnificent path. Footbridges
  5. 4 : km 3.56 - alt. 796 m - Lac de Fischboedle
  6. 5 : km 4.48 - alt. 929 m - lac de schiessrothried
  7. 6 : km 6.56 - alt. 900 m - Sillackerwase car park
  8. 7 : km 8.6 - alt. 623 m - Fork - Pfeiferberg
  9. S/E : km 10.5 - alt. 494 m - Car park. Rue de Mittlach in Steinabruck

 Always stay careful and alert while following a route. Visorando and the author of this walk cannot be held responsible in the event of an accident during this route.

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

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 17 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Clarity of route map
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
GérardPierre67
GérardPierre67

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of walk : Jul 20, 2025
Reliability of the description : N/A
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Busy trail : Yes

Once you reach Schiessrothried Lake, I recommend walking around the lake. After walking around the lake, I preferred to take the GR531 and head towards the old military cemetery at Sillacker (Captain Mounier's grave), from where you can rejoin the circuit. Further on, at point 7, I followed the Sillacker road to stay on a shaded forest track and reach the Wormsa chalets and then the car park.

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LERCHER
LERCHER

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : May 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

A very nice hike on the weekend of the ascent, with no difficulties whatsoever. A few people on the way up, lots of people at Schiessrothried lake for lunch. But we hardly met anyone on the way back. The 2 lakes are magnificent. I modified the route a little by going straight down to the starting point without passing through the village and following the Sillacker path.

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Agnès et Dadou
Agnès et Dadou

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Mar 21, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Great hike with sunshine and perfect weather
beautiful waterfalls, amazing when you get to the lakes
we really loved it

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Jojo68
Jojo68

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 06, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Very good hike, quite difficult but with beautiful scenery
The lake is magnificent and you can stop there to eat; there are benches.

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bernard_dorli
bernard_dorli

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Sep 18, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

A beautiful walk in this wild corner of the Vosges.
The passage through the rockfalls is somewhat reminiscent of the Sentier des Roches.
Quite a few people, which is normal, except on the descent where there was no one.

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mauricejeannine
mauricejeannine

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : May 07, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

A magnificent hike...it was unfortunate that it was rather cold, so we did not linger at the lakes. The Fischboedle Lake appeared more attractive to us. The Wormsa Valley is very wild, particularly when you arrive at the waterfalls and all the footbridges that span them. The few scree slopes you have to cross aren't too bad: unlike the scree slopes we've often encountered in the Alps, here they're not high up (so no fear of vertigo) and the stones are stable and fairly small. With lots of stops to admire the view and take photos, the hike took us 5 hours and 45 minutes (aged 76 and 78, with walking sticks and hiking boots). Lunch was a quick affair, though, given how cold it was! A hike not to be missed!

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GERARD Sonia
GERARD Sonia
• Last modified:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Apr 06, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

Very beautiful route with stunning views. At this time of year, the vegetation was magnificent with its different shades of green and the waterfall flowing abundantly. I recommend this hike to nature lovers. On Sundays and during the first few days of good weather, it was quite busy but it was still enjoyable.

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Lameijegr
Lameijegr

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Sep 01, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

A beautiful hike in the wild setting of the Wormsa valley in the Hautes-Vosges.
The section towards the end, around waypoint 7, is particularly noteworthy: these are undoubtedly old logging trails carved out of the surrounding terrain, lined with lovely trees and with a significant incline.
Reasonable visitor numbers on this beautiful September Saturday, with a few more people at Schiessrothried lake.

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Stef13P
Stef13P

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Sep 03, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

A lovely walk on Sunday. The climb up to the lakes is rocky and steep in places, but perfectly manageable. The paths are quiet, with a few more people around the two lakes. Some beautiful views.
The signposting is very clear (fairly new signs), so there were no problems finding our way. We counted 10 km for this loop, with a little extra from the station to get back to the route.
Very satisfied, thank you for sharing.

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billbock
billbock

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Aug 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Superb hike, not many people and very pleasant all the way to the lakes,
and the charming village of Metzeral to finish off.
to be repeated

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mlecarpe
mlecarpe

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 23, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

We went on this hike on a beautiful sunny day and extended it because it was a little too short for our liking: from Schiessrothried Lake, we went to Gaschney and then returned to Schiessrothried Lake via the Schiessroth farmhouse inn, which added 1 hour and 50 minutes to the route. However, we got lost at point 6 and continued along the small road, as the signs were not very clear! We ended up at the Braunkopf inn, where we found a nice path down to Metzeral.
A beautiful walk!

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-Oliver-
-Oliver-

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of walk : Jul 30, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

To confirm what JeffT67 said: I accidentally took a shortcut at the end and both my GPS devices (watch and phone) showed a distance of over 11 km. The total distance must therefore be close to 14 km.

Otherwise, the climb is superb. Thank you!

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JeffT67
JeffT67
• Last modified:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of walk : Dec 31, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : Yes

A beautiful route, especially on 1 January with a clear blue sky and snow melting quickly from the peaks. The Wormsa was bursting with energy.
However, my GPS and my partner's GPS recorded a distance of over 14 km.
The best part: the climb along the Wormsa with its various footbridges.
The downside: the last kilometre, which is on Rue de l'Altenhof, with no pavement, to get back to the starting point. This section could be shortened and made safer (in part) by turning right into Rue des Vergers when you come down Rue Sillacker.
I do not recommend doing this route in rainy or snowy weather. This is because a large part of the uphill section is very rocky, like a rock trail, and can be dangerous.
There are many variations to choose from.
It must be superb in spring.
Thank you for this route.

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groupe67
groupe67

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 24, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Very beautiful hike, ideal weather, not too hot. Excellent lunch at the Hinterberg farm, not very crowded.
A wonderful day for our group.

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Charles 67
Charles 67

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of walk : Oct 14, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Busy trail : No

Very beautiful hike, accurate description.
Thanks for sharing.

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