The Taennchel massif from Thannenkirch

Discover the Taennchel massif and its impressive sandstone rocks of the Vosges from the picturesque village of Thannenkirch.

Details

35642
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 15.27 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 6h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 567 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 568 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 970 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 464 m

Photos

Description of the walk

Arriving from Bergheim, just before the entrance to Thannenkirch, turn left and park in the car park. A sign indicates all the accessible trails. The one we are interested in is mainly marked with red rings.

(S/E) From the car park, follow the path towards Col de Renk. Continue on the Anneau Rouge trail.

(1) Pass the Cerisier Noir crossroads to reach the charming Taennchel (Hasenclever) shelter, which has tables for camping.

(2) From there, take the path that climbs up immediately to the right of the shelter. After 100 metres, take the small path on the left. This path, which is a little steep and in the middle of the forest, climbs up to the Paix d'Udine rock, which offers a beautiful view of the valley.

(3) Walk along the ridge and the Mur Païen. There are many rocks along the path, including one called Pointu and, further on, the Titans.

(4) Continue until you reach the Rocher de Bellevue, which lives up to its name, and you will see the Haut-Koenisbourg castle perched on a hill in the distance.

(5) Stay on the trail, pass the Rocher des Géants and arrive at the Abri Kutzig Buech crossroads.

(6) Continue along the path to this shelter.

(7) Return to the previous crossroads.

(6) Take the small path on the left that descends towards Rotzel.

(8) Continue to the Vosges Trotters chalet in Sélestat.

(9) Take the path on the right, then the road that descends towards Thannenkirch. Cross the village to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 465 m - Car park near the Thannenkirch cemetery
  2. 1 : km 3.65 - alt. 649 m - Crossroads of the Black Cherry Tree
  3. 2 : km 4.17 - alt. 709 m - Abri du Taennchel (Hasenclever)
  4. 3 : km 6.24 - alt. 894 m - Rock of Peace in Udine
  5. 4 : km 7.43 - alt. 923 m - Rock of the Titans
  6. 5 : km 8.08 - alt. 919 m - Bellevue Rock
  7. 6 : km 9.5 - alt. 952 m - Crossroads at the Kutzig Buech shelter
  8. 7 : km 9.91 - alt. 966 m - Abri Kutzig Buech
  9. 8 : km 12.18 - alt. 696 m - Rotzel
  10. 9 : km 12.91 - alt. 675 m - Chalet Vosges Trotters
  11. S/E : km 15.27 - alt. 464 m - Car park near the Thannenkirch cemetery

Notes

There are two large shelters along the way: Hasenclever and Kutzig Buech.

Worth a visit

On your way back down to the plain, you can visit the beautiful Alsatian villages of Kaysersberg, Ribeauvillé and Riquewihr, Colmar or the Haut-Koenigsbourg Castle.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 56 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.5 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
68christian88
68christian88

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The route is designed to be done in reverse to allow you to visit the three castles of Ribeauvillé at the end of the route (which was not done in the end).
The climb out of the village towards Rotzel offers the opportunity to refresh yourself with blackberries, which are particularly abundant at this time of year.
The steep, unmarked climb shortly after Rotzel is steep and requires good footing if you are going downhill (in the "normal" direction).
The rocks are remarkable and the views, particularly of the Sainte-Marie aux Mines valley, are beautiful.
It was a real discovery in an area we don't usually explore, but which was quite busy that day.

Machine-translated

jack berthelot
jack berthelot

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Perfect route, lots of hikers in superb weather.

Machine-translated

xerocrete
xerocrete

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 14, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We did this varied walk for the 2nd time, following the description as far as point 9. After the chalet, we opted for the route - with the red signpost - which climbs to the right towards Thannenkirch via ND des Bois. The path is less steep and ends up on the discovery trail, the old granite quarry and its small pond with an interesting biotope. But on the way back to the starting point, there's no escaping the tarmac...

Machine-translated

FCBayern
FCBayern

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 05, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The final descent from the Vosges Trotters chalet is a little rough, but there may be an option a little earlier, a blue cross path down towards Thannenkirch, which is worth trying out.
The route along the Mur Paien is sublime.

Machine-translated

Fanny68
Fanny68

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 16, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Super circuit

Machine-translated

Sophie Herzog
Sophie Herzog

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 04, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

The descent to Thannenkirch is via a path starting at the Vosges Trotters chalet, which is very steep and badly marked. It might be better to take the blue cross path, a little before Vosges trotters on the right. Worth a try

Machine-translated

sylvie68
sylvie68

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 22, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful place, super easy hike

Machine-translated

laika1963
laika1963

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 11, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

With some very fine views

Machine-translated

JFP
JFP

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 30, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A beautiful hike that takes in some surprising rock formations and offers great views of the surrounding valleys.

Machine-translated

xerocrete
xerocrete

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 25, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Nice route. The signposting on the Taennchel massif leaves something to be desired.
The route between the starting point and point 1 is very long!
Be careful not to take the blue cross path between points 7 and 8, which leads directly to Thannenkirch.
The end of the route, with the village crossing on tarmac, is tedious and would benefit from a different route to avoid the tarmac.

Machine-translated

Jacky D
Jacky D

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 02, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Magnificent circuit, very beautiful rocks and scenery, the circuit wasn't very busy, but I did it during the week, so it must be much busier at the weekend.

Machine-translated

1956 didi nepal
1956 didi nepal

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 03, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very nice walk. The unmarked path down to the right of the Chalet Vosges Trotters is in very poor condition.
It's better to take the signposted "blue cross" path on the right halfway between the Abri Rotzel and the Chalet Vosges Trotters. Very few people on Easter Saturday just before the lock-in

Machine-translated

francisrohmer@sfr.fr
francisrohmer@sfr.fr

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 03, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A varied circuit of forest tracks and narrow paths. You don't need to know much about maps to do this walk, just follow the "red ring" signs along the way.
Please share your routes

Machine-translated

Nature57
Nature57

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 18, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pretty hike to discover the Païen wall and its extraordinary rocks! Also worth a visit is the pretty village of Thannenkirch.

Machine-translated

Nellybulle
Nellybulle
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

forest trail, which is very well signposted, red ring all along the route, impossible to go wrong! Beautiful walk, sometimes a little long in places! But the corner with the rocks is really beautiful, and leaves plenty of room for our imagination when it comes to their shapes!

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.