On the banks of the Ill, the Thur and the Vieille Thur

Eiblen Park car park, Chemin de l’Eiblen.

This route is a longer version of the walk ‘The banks of the Thur and the Vieille Thur in the land of potash’.

(S/E) Enter the park via the small bridge, go round the stork enclosure on the right, then continue left past the goat enclosure. Then turn right to reach and cross a playground. Head up the wide path overlooking the vast Étang de l’Eiblen.

(1) Turn right to go round the lake, leave the path at the^first track on the left which leads to the western bank. Continue between the banks of the Ill and the lake, dotted with remarkable trees. Shortly after the southern end of the lake, you’ll reach a junction with a path; continue for a few dozen metres to the tennis courts.

Blue Diamond markings.

(2) Pass the “Passerelle Himalayenne” (return route) on your right and continue straight on along the Sentier de l’Ill, a wide cycle path. At the imposing water tower, it joins another cycle path. Turn right and cross the Ill via the metal footbridge running alongside Rue de Colmar (D2).

(3) Leave the path on your right (the return route), continue straight ahead, go round the roundabout and carry on straight across the D2 towards Wittenheim. At the next junction, turn right onto Rue du Tir (on the left, a sign indicates Compostelle 2192 km).

Green Saltire signposting.

Walk past the stadium on your right, then go round the roundabout on the right to arrive in front of the École des Oréades.

(4) Take the path to the left of the school towards the Étang de la Gravière. Turn left onto the cycle path along the south-eastern bank of the pond. At the end, turn right then climb the embankment on the western bank, with the forest on your left, and reach the banks of the Thur.

(5) Turn left upstream. Enjoy the peace and quiet between the river and the forest (Thurwald). Pass a ford on the right; further on, the path leaves the forest; continue straight on for about 200 m along a field. Turn right into the forest and head for the riverbank. A little further upstream, a pretty footbridge spans the river. Take this bridge, leaving the Way of St James, and reach the left bank.

Green Disc signposting.

(6) There are two options:
- Shortcut option: turn right downstream to reach the two ponds very quickly (10), preferable in wet weather.
- Option shown on the map and in the description: turn left upstream. After about 400 m, ignore a path on the right and continue to the next junction.

Yellow Ring markings.

(7) Leave the riverbank by turning right towards the Parc du Petit Prince. After crossing a field, enter the forest. The path soon reaches the Vieille Thur; after the bridge, turn right. The path heads north again, leaves the forest and passes a sandstone cross bearing an engraved hand and the year 1611. You will then reach a junction before the Feldbach stream.

(8) Continue for a few dozen metres and, after a quick glance at the Parc du Petit Prince, return to the crossroads.

Unmarked.

Leave the Yellow Ring marked trail for the path heading south-east, entering the Espenwald forest. Keep heading in this direction until you reach the Vieille Thur^{for the second time}; a grassy path branches off to the left just after the bridge.

(9) There are two options:

- If the path is too overgrown, continue straight ahead, leave the forest and reach the bank of the Thur. Follow it to the left (Green Disc markings), pass the footbridge, and continue to the ponds and the point (10).
- Option chosen on the map and in the description: turn left onto this little-used path (not shown on the map) on the right bank of the Vieille Thur. Ignore a turn-off to the left. Further on, the path moves away from the bank in a south-easterly direction, crosses a ditch (a former watercourse) and then turns north-east, approaching the Thur, whose rapids can be heard. When you reach a wide path, turn right at the junction, between two ponds.

(10) A short detour to the right along the bank of the Thur allows you to enjoy the rapids, as well as the ponds, which are oxbow lakes of the Thur. Leave the bank, ignore the Green Disc markings on the path along the river, and return to the crossroads by passing between the ponds again. (See alternative route in Practical Information).

Green Disc markings.

(10) At the crossroads, the signpost is partially obscured by a white label. Head north-east towards Ensisheim. Keep heading in this direction. The path approaches the right bank of the Vieille-Thur and joins a wide forest track near a bridge.

Blue Triangle signposting.

(11) Leave the Green Disc markings, cross the forest track and, staying on the right bank, take a wide path marked with a Blue Triangle. Further on, it moves away from the Vieille Thur along the edge of a field. Shortly after a ‘private forest road’ sign and an old sandstone boundary marker, the path begins to curve to the left. At this bend, a grassy path branches off to the right.

Unmarked

(12) Leave the Blue Triangle markings. Turn right into the forest and reach the embankment bordering the left bank of the Thur. Continue straight ahead. At the end, let the track continue to the left. Descend from the embankment. See Practical Information.

(13) Ignore the path veering off to the left; continue along the track towards the bridge. Go under the bridge and climb up to the left. Turn sharply left to cross the metal footbridge running alongside the D4B.

(14) Take the path on the left on the right bank of the Thur. Pass a travellers’ camp, the fishermen’s pond and a^second pond on your right. Continue for about 400 m to reach the confluence of the Thur and the Ill, marked by a statue (two faces carved into red sandstone).
You can get closer to where the two rivers meet to enjoy a lovely view: head back along the path, and after a few metres, take the path on the left for a short round trip (shown on the map).

(15) Return to the path along the bank of the Ill and, just past the allotments, take the Himalayan footbridge crossing the Ill. See Practical Information.

(2) Cross the Ill and rejoin the Sentier de l'Ill for the return journey to the Parc de l'Eiblen. Turn left, then downhill to the right towards the sports facilities. Immediately afterwards, head diagonally left to walk alongside the ponds, which are home to a wide variety of birds. At the end of the enclosures, turn left towards the car park (S/E).

Please note: in wet weather, the paths and trails can be very muddy. In such cases, opt for the shorter route by walking from (6) to (10) downstream along the left bank of the Thur.

(2) The 90-metre-long Himalayan footbridge opened in April 2024 for pedestrians and cyclists.

(10) Alternative route: it is possible to continue along the left bank of the Thur on the wide, Green Disc-marked path. At the crossroads, before the ford, turn left and head towards Vieille Thur at point (11).

(13) If the path leading to point (14) from the embankment is overgrown with grass, or during high water, turn left after coming down from the embankment onto the path that veers towards a wide track, then turn right to reach the D4b. Follow it to the right and cross at the next pedestrian crossing.

(11) The Vieille Thur: Near the Chalet Grien, 5.3 km before its confluence with the Ill, the Thur feeds into the Vieille Thur diversion channel (or Canal des XII Moulins), which is in fact the former bed of the Thur. This branch is used mainly for crop irrigation; it flows into the Lauch shortly before Colmar after a course of 26 km. According to SAGE 2001, p.14.

Things to see or do in Ensisheim.

(7) The Yellow Ring route circles the Le Petit Prince theme park andthe Écomusée d'Alsace.