Nibelungensteig (10): Miltenberg – Freudenberg

(S) The route starts at the historic market square in Miltenberg. Follow Schulstraße towards the Main, cross Mainstraße and you will reach the harbour promenade. There, turn right past the boat landing stage towards the Main bridge.

(1) The path leads to the end of the harbour promenade, past the large car park. You will reach Jahnstraße and continue on the footpath, with the swimming pool on your left. After the swimming pool building, turn left and cross the car park diagonally.

(2) You will reach a narrow footpath that runs along the Main River. Follow this until just after the underpass.

(3) Cross the Erf river and the path winds its way through an allotment garden, past a kindergarten and into Bürgstadt. Turn left onto Weidengasse, which leads to Krummgasse. Follow this road across the intersection and onto Freudenberger Straße. Be careful here: after house number 18, turn right into a narrow alley and you will reach Martinsgasse.

(4) Between the garden centre and Martinskapelle, follow the narrow lane all the way through, but not without visiting Martinskapelle first. You will reach Danziger Straße, where you turn left until you reach the corner of Karlsbader Straße. Follow this to the right until you reach Königsberger Straße. Turn right again.

(5) Easy to miss, follow the narrow footpath to the left, slightly uphill, past a playground, through an underpass, then shortly afterwards turn left downhill until you reach Stormstraße, which you follow to the right for a few metres. Immediately after the turning area, turn right into Hauptmannstraße, which after a few metres leads to an unpaved path and then slightly uphill into the forest. At a fork in the path, you will reach the forest path, which you follow uphill towards the Centgrafen ruins.

(6) It is worth taking a look at the opposite side of the Main and also visiting the hidden Marienkapelle chapel. Follow the road until the next left-hand bend. Here, leave the forest path and continue straight ahead, then after a few metres turn left onto a narrow path and follow it uphill.

(7) Directly at the ruins, you will reach the road again (Kirchenweg). Here, you will not only have a magnificent view of the valley, but also plenty of benches to rest on. After the ruins, follow the Weigehäusleweg to the right.

(8) From here, you walk along the historic hiking trail, keeping left at the fork and right at the second crossroads.

(9) A short detour to the left takes you past two hay pillars and back to the marked path.

(10) On the right-hand side, a sign points to the hay barrels, which can be reached via a path a few metres below the main path. Shortly afterwards, keep right to continue following the historic hiking trail.

(11) After another 700 metres, you will reach the ring wall on Bürgstädter Berg and turn right at the crossroads. Keep left at the next fork. Shortly afterwards, you will come to a gravel square, where a wooden sign points half-right to the summit cross. Follow this path.

(12) You will finally reach the summit of the Wannenberg at an altitude of 482 metres above sea level! Keep left after the summit and walk slightly downhill on wide hiking trails. Turn right at the next T-junction and then take the second left. You will come onto a narrow, steep path, some of which is rocky. The path curves sharply to the left and, depending on the time of year, you can already see Freudenberg Castle on your right. Then there is another hairpin bend to the right and shortly afterwards you will reach the castle.

(13) Below the castle, follow the steps and countless stairs lead down to Freudenberg. You reach the village and take the very steep paved Burgweg downhill to the town hall directly on the main road. This is the official, albeit unmarked, end of the Nibelungensteig. Follow the main road a short distance to the right, cross the Main on the bridge, continue straight ahead, then turn left into the street Am Bahnhof.

(E) From here, you can take the train back to Miltenberg in a few minutes. If you're not tired yet, you can hike back along the Main (approx. 9 km). To do this, don't cross the bridge, but take the main road directly to the banks of the Main and keep left.

There is a hiking pass for the Nibelungensteig, in which you can document your stages and then submit it. This qualifies you for the Nibelungensteig hiking pin

Trail markings:
The trail is marked throughout with a red N, and the access route with a green N.

Trails:
Partly easy forest paths, partly unpaved forest trails, not to be underestimated in terms of fitness. Most of the paths are used by mountain bikers and hikers at the same time.

Rest and refreshments

(7) Shelter and bench at the Centgrafen ruins
(11) Rest area with table and benches
(12) Rest area with table at the summit
(13) A wonderful backdrop for a break, but with little shade in summer
Main riverbank in Freudenberg: Don't cross the Main, but turn right along the river. There is a beer garden and an ice cream parlour there .

Overnight

numerous options in Freudenberg or take the train back to Miltenberg in a few minutes and stay there (see stage 9)

Toilets

• Public toilet in Miltenberg on the harbour promenade
• Public toilet in Bürgstadt between Freudenberger Straße and Martinsgasse
• Public toilet in Freudenberg opposite the beer garden on Maingasse

Arrival

• Take the train to Miltenberg station, walk towards the old town at Berliner Platz, cross the Main bridge (1) to the harbour promenade and board the train here (approx. 10 minutes)
• If you are arriving by car, you can park in the public car park on Hafenpromenade and board the trail directly from there
• In Freudenberg, the end point of this tour, you can take the train from Freudenberg-Kirschfurt station back to Miltenberg. The journey takes approx. 8 minutes, with trains departing every 30 minutes during the day. Departure times can be found at http://www.bahn.de

Map: Hiking map Nibelungensteig, Zwingenberg - Freudenberg: Leporello hiking map with excursion destinations, refreshment and leisure tips, weatherproof, tear-proof, wipeable, GPS-accurate. 1:25000 (Leporello hiking map / LEP-WK)

(4) St. Martin's Chapel: The key is available for a small fee of €2 from the Kling garden centre. There is a machine inside to the left of the chapel entrance. You will need a €2 coin to listen to the worthwhile 15-minute audio tour.

(6) Mainhölle: Sandstone was once quarried under inhumane conditions on the opposite side of the Main. A few metres away, at the end of the path, is the Marienkapelle chapel.

(7) Centgrafen Ruins: An unfinished church with a magnificent view of the valley

(8) Historical hiking trail: the most important characters from the Nibelungenlied in words and sculpture, created by pupils from Miltenberg Middle School.

(9) Hay pillars and (10) hay barrels: carved stone pillars that were never completed

(11) Reconstruction of the former Celtic ring wall

(12) Summit cross on the Wannenberg: not really recognisable as a summit, but a nice touch. There is even a summit book in which you should definitely sign your name. Don't forget to take a photo of the summit.

(13) Freudenberg Castle with witch's tower.
Every odd year, the castle festival takes place in the castle courtyard. https://www.burgschauspielverein-freuden...