Return to Cascade Charlemagne

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A beautiful morning hike.

Details

n°10538
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 13.95 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 7h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,062 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 1,056 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,362 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 809 m
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Description of the walk

Depart from the D67 at the Cascade de Charlemagne car park.

(S/E) Take the Red Triangle marked trail to the Charlemagne Waterfall, then join the Chemin des Dames (Green Disc markings) via a small forest path. Take the Chemin des Dames on the right and follow it to the D34d.

(1) Climb up opposite, along the ski lift, via a fairly steep path to the Chemin des Mulets (marked with a red disc).

(2) Follow it to the right, cross the Route des Crêtes and continue on the path opposite until you reach the Col de Falimont.

(3) Climb up to Honneck to the orientation table, following the red rectangle markings.

(4) Descend towards Le Gaschney via Le Petit Honneck, following the red triangle markings.

(5) Take theGR®531(red and white markings, and also blue rectangle) to Frankental.

(6) Leave theGR® to climb left to the Col de Falimont.

(3) Above the pass, turn right onto theGR®5towards Haut de Falimont

(7). Continue north.

(8) Above a junction with a footpath, turn left towards an electricity pylon, which you can see on your left. 100 m further on, cross the Route des Crêtes at the top of the ski lift. Continue straight on to the Chemin des Mulets.

(2) Retrace your steps back to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 809 m - Car park - Cascade Charlemagne
  2. 1 : km 1.45 - alt. 1,083 m - D34d. Climb opposite, along the ski lift.
  3. 2 : km 1.75 - alt. 1,169 m - Chemin des Mulets
  4. 3 : km 3.06 - alt. 1,294 m - Col de Falimont (1295m)
  5. 4 : km 3.69 - alt. 1,362 m - Le Hohneck
  6. 5 : km 5.89 - alt. 1,064 m - Gaschney (le)
  7. 6 : km 9.74 - alt. 1,030 m - Frankental - Auberge du Frankenthal
  8. 7 : km 11.09 - alt. 1,305 m - Haut de Falimont (1306m)
  9. 8 : km 11.8 - alt. 1,252 m - Turn left towards an EDF pylon. - Vologne (rivière)
  10. S/E : km 13.95 - alt. 809 m - Car park - Cascade Charlemagne

Notes

Excellent view from the summit of Honneck over Alsace, the Black Forest and the Swiss Alps when the weather is clear, with the possibility of seeing chamois (early in the morning). Steep path between Gaschney and Frankental, steep climb up Col de Falimont.

This route passes through a protected area, which may be subject to special regulations:

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

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

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Reviews and comments

4 / 5
Based on 15 reviews
Reliability of the description
3.6 / 5
Ease of following the route
3.6 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
Tessier P.
Tessier P.
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 15, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Instead of climbing Gaschney, I went around it, just to get a "little" flat terrain. Knowing the area well, I did a second variation for the landscape...

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legrchav2
legrchav2
• Edited:

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 29, 2019
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We did this hike and everything was going pretty well (a little searching for point 2 because there are no red circles) until point 4. However, we then had to take another path to reach point 5 (we just walked along the chairlift as there was no other path) and then we couldn't find the fork that leads back to the GR 531, so we couldn't continue The app's "map" did allow us to find another route that goes through the Dagobert cave and finally reach point 6. There was a beautiful but very challenging climb up the Falimont Pass, with magnificent scenery (it felt like we were in the Alps). The end (3 to 2) towards the electricity pylon was closed 20 metres from the road by a fence, which we climbed over because the sound of cars gave away our position. So we ended up with a 16 km hike with varied scenery along the way.

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sam21220
sam21220

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 26, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Please note that the climb from Frankenthal to the Falimont Pass is very steep. The return route from point 3 to point 2 is not clearly marked and difficult to find.

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grandin
grandin ★

I added the pylon marker to the description, on the way back in (3). For the rest, please feel free to give us any information you may have. I also adjusted the route slightly so that it follows the paths and trails more precisely.

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Lefebvre pauline
Lefebvre pauline

Overall rating : 2.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 13, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We are experienced hikers and unfortunately we found that the description lacked precise directions in certain places, which forced us to improvise and therefore extend our route or take more difficult paths.

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Sam88
Sam88

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 07, 2018
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A beautiful hike, but one that almost ended badly. At the beginning of April, there was still snow on the ground, making some sections difficult and dangerous. We ended up at the foot of the Falimont Pass, which was impossible to climb, and were forced to turn back 3 km from the end.
That doesn't take anything away from this beautiful hike, but it would have been nice to know beforehand.
Not recommended in winter without equipment.

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bruno55
bruno55

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 02, 2017
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike with chamois on the descent from Hohneck.

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bruno55
bruno55

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 02, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Difficult route, can be completed in a day.
Chamois and beautiful views at Hohneck.

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bibi
bibi ★

For maps in the app, remember to cache the map (save it to your phone so you don't need a connection).
Please provide as many details as possible to complete the description.
Kind regards

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Rift
Rift

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 22, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

The hike took 6 hours as indicated, and I think the difficulty level should be changed from moderate to difficult.
And remember to wear good walking shoes, even though I saw people wearing simple flat shoes... And not new ones like I did, apparently you can't feel them and they're comfortable... That wasn't the case... Anyway.
The description is limited, especially if you rely on it alone. For me, going around the little Hohneck does not mean climbing it...
As for the return trip, I searched in vain for the path... Even though I was able to find my way back, it never found me...
I think that's about it.
Otherwise, really beautiful views, very pleasant little paths, taking the same route back is a bit of a shame, I'd say, but never mind. And at this time of year, yes, the waterfall isn't very interesting.
Oh yes, as for the app, I subscribed so I could consult the IGN maps, as I no longer had anything offline, and when you zoom in too much, some paths disappear... A little disappointed.

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dad64
dad64

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 20, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

A very beautiful hike, physically demanding, which took us 7 hours, taking our time to look at the scenery and watch the chamois.
Finding the Chemin des Dames after the waterfall is a bit tricky, but you always end up finding it in the end.
Rather than climbing the Petit Hohneck via a barely visible path, we preferred to go around it via Schallen. The path is very pleasant.
For the return to point 3, we had to improvise a little, but with the explanations and the map, we arrived at point 2 without any problems. We did as Patrick did, using the pylon as a landmark.

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patrick51
patrick51

(3) Above the pass, turn right onto the GR5. Turn left onto the path to reach the Route des Crêtes at the top of the ski lift. Join the Chemin des Mulets.
* This small path, about 10 cm wide, is difficult to find on the way back. It crosses a pasture and merges with a stream crossing to reach the top of the ski lift. There are no visual landmarks, and you are surrounded by tall trees. Only an electricity pylon provides any orientation.

If that helps...

Patrick

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bibi
bibi ★

Thank you for your feedback. If you have any additional information to share with us, we could add it to the description, which may be useful for future hikers.
Kind regards

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patrick51
patrick51

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 14, 2017
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good

As amateur hikers, we did this hike in a few showers, which was not pleasant.
in 6 hours.
Nevertheless, it was a beautiful hike with lovely views here and there. The description lacks detail, so in my opinion, you shouldn't attempt it without a GPS. Some of the paths are difficult to find.

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gazok54
gazok54 ★

Thank you, Manalo
What did you find unsatisfactory about the reliability of the route?

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