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We start in the centre of Güttersbach at the bench (crossroads Im Städtel - Hüttenthaler Straße).
(S) At the bench, we keep to the left and walk along Hüttenthaler Straße, past the Landgasthof zum Goldenen Löwen and the outdoor swimming pool. Immediately after the outdoor swimming pool, we turn right and follow the Nibelungensteig sign up the tarred road. At the next fork, we turn left up the road Am Vogelherd.
(1) At the birdhouse, follow the paved road to the left, winding uphill. At the edge of the forest, the road becomes an unpaved forest path. It is worth taking a look back at Güttersbach before entering the forest. At the T-junction, follow hiking trail no. 6 to the left downhill. At the next T-junction, turn right and you can now follow the Nibelungensteig trail sign again.
(2) At the signpost, keep left and pass a shelter on your left shortly after the crossroads. Follow the Nibelungensteig sign, initially downhill on the paved road. After approx. 100 m, turn right onto a narrow path into the forest.
(3) The path leads along a forest and bird sanctuary trail with information boards about the fauna and flora of the area. You will reach the paved forest road again and follow it downhill to the left until you reach Güttersbacher Straße.
(4) At the Mossauthalhalle signpost, turn right towards Marbach Stausee. You have arrived in Hüttenthal, the village with the smallest dairy in the Odenwald. After crossing the Marbach stream, you will reach a wider country road, which you follow to the right (Untere Siegfriedstraße).
(5) At the Hüttenthal signpost, the Nibelungensteig trail splits. If you want to go to Erbach, continue straight ahead towards the bus stop. We take the route via Ebersberg and turn right into Molkereiweg. Be sure to visit the dairy farm shop and stock up on provisions! At the fork behind the dairy, follow the right-hand path uphill and turn left at the large free-standing oak tree, passing the Waldbubenhof holiday resort. Follow the path uphill, keeping left at all junctions. The path winds its way along the edge of the forest.
(6) We reach a distinctive tree on the left. We stay at the edge of the forest, our path becomes a gravel forest road and shortly afterwards we see the Marbach reservoir and parts of the dam through the trees. At the next crossroads, we turn left downhill towards the reservoir.
(7) We skip the switchbacks and follow the footpath to the right downhill at the barrier, directly to the paved shore path, which we follow to the right until we reach the DLRG tower with public toilets.
(8) Then keep left downhill until you finally reach the edge of the forest again and follow the path along the shore, finally turning right uphill at the next fork just before the control tower in the water and arriving at a barrier and information board. Cross the car park and you will reach the Mümling Water Board building.
(9) During the summer season, a kiosk and toilets may be open here. Here, we follow the road over the dam and cross the country road at the pedestrian crossing, take the cycle path opposite the dam and follow it to the right, initially parallel to the country road. We cross a car park, at the end of which our path turns left up into the forest. We ignore all turnings and follow the signpost straight ahead. At a T-junction, we reach a gravel forest road, which we follow to the right. At the edge of the forest, our path becomes a paved road.
(10) At the next T-junction with a magnificent view, turn right downhill, following the signpost. Follow the path downhill, first straight ahead, then in a right-hand bend until you reach the road, which you follow to the right. The signpost is not immediately visible here. Cross the road at a pedestrian crossing.
(11) At the Vesperhäusle, turn into Ebersberger Straße and follow it uphill.
(12) We reach a recreational area and can see a slide and a hut to our left.
If you don't need a break, you can skip this detour and follow Ebersberger Straße to number 33 – a striking sandstone building with a yellow post box. Here, turn into Zum Viadukt and gradually leave Ebersberg behind. Pass the cemetery on the outskirts of the village, walk past a few houses and you will see the Himbächel viaduct ahead of you.
(13) Here, we take the narrow path up to the left, pass under the viaduct and follow the sign for Nibelungensteig. After the viaduct, we are immersed in the silence of the Odenwald forest, and it is worth stopping every now and then to listen to nature.
(14) Our path leads past a pond with a hut, and we continue to follow the sign for Nibelungensteig. The gravel forest path winds gently downhill in large serpentines.
(15) We pass a bench with a view. Shortly afterwards, we need to be careful in a relatively tight left-hand bend.
(16) If your path suddenly becomes noticeably steeper, you are on the wrong track. At the apex of the bend, follow the unmarked path uphill. The sign is not visible at the crossroads, only a few hundred metres later. The path climbs steeply up a narrow trail. As soon as we reach the forest road, we follow it slightly downhill to the right. After about 100 metres, we reach a crossroads and take the left-hand path – a gravel-covered sunken path that leads us uphill again. We reach another forest path, which we follow to the right.
(17) At the Felsenmeer signpost, continue straight ahead, following the Nibelungensteig. We are now in the middle of the Ebersberg rock sea, which spreads out to the right and left of our path. At an inconspicuous crossroads, before the forest becomes denser again, we turn left uphill and cross the Felsenmeer on a wonderful path, which requires sure-footedness in some places. We keep to the right or straight ahead at the junctions and follow the other signs – if the Nibelungensteigweg sign is not visible – until we reach a T-junction in a clearing.
(18) At the Bullau signpost, turn left directly to Bullau – this is a must if you are staying overnight in Bullau, as the official route to Bullau is not worth it and part of it is covered in the stage from Bullau to Hesselbach anyway.
Our route description follows the signpost to the right to the hamlet of Gebhardshütte. At the next fork, we keep left and after a paddock, we turn sharp left and continue below the same paddock. We follow the well-marked path downhill, continue straight ahead at a crossroads, then take a sharp right turn until the next fork.
(19) Here, the Nibelungensteig splits, or rather, the variant via Erbach rejoins the normal route. We follow the path to the left in long switchbacks uphill, take the hairpin bend to the left at a crossroads and finally reach the paved road.
(20) At the T-junction with the Schumpert bank, the Nibelungensteig sign points to the right. Here, you would continue on the bypass route to Erbach or come from there.
To get to Bullau, turn left and you will soon reach the town sign and the Schumbert inn on your right.
(E) Our stage in Bullau ends at the cemetery.
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