Wild valley and panoramic heights

Start: Marktplatz, Calw

Parking:
Calwer Markt car park (Lederstraße, 75365 Calw)
ZOB car park (Bischofstraße, 75365 Calw)
Kaufland car park (Inselgasse, 75365 Calw)
Haggasse car park (Haggasse, 75365 Calw)

Public transport starting point: Calw railway station

Follow the signposts of the Black Forest Association: Calwer Markt, Unteres Ledereck, Schinderbach, Altburger Weg, Hirsau, Brudersteige, Schweinbachtal, Steinernes Brückle, Kirchweg, Altburg, Bäckergässle, Wurstbrunnenbach, Stadtgarten, Calwer Markt

(S/E) We start our walk at Marktstraße, which we follow to the left. We then turn left onto Lederstraße and head out of town. At Kaufland, we keep to the left, cross the road and join the Hirsauer Wiesenweg, which we follow to the right.

(1) We now follow the black and red diamond markings into the forest and soon begin to gain height, step by step.

(2) After a short, alpine-style path, we reach a wide forest track which leads us gently downhill towards Hirsau. We can already catch a glimpse of the monastic settlement with its medieval ruins.

(3) Behind a pavilion with a rest area, a narrow path winds its way down. Following this, we reach Hirsau, turn left onto the Altburger Weg, follow Wildbader Straße briefly to the left and then immediately turn right off it.

(4) We reach the famous St Peter and Paul monastery complex.
We leave the monastery grounds through the Upper Gate and cross the road.

(5) Then, following the blue diamond, we pass through the Bärental district to the game reserve, where we can watch red deer grazing. We turn right and walk along the Schweinbach stream.

(6) Passing a business, we come to a fork in the path where we take the right-hand fork and let the yellow diamond guide us. The path leads gently uphill and, as we pass the last house, it narrows, eventually leading us into the gentle tranquillity of the forest.

(7) We can take a break by a well before venturing further into the wild and romantic Schweinbach Valley. At the fork behind the well, we keep to the right.

For a short stretch, our walk continues along a wide path, but then, as we cross a bridge, an adventurous, almost inconspicuous trail opens up before us. Even in the first few metres, it’s hard to keep our eyes on the path – the natural world around us is simply too interesting and inviting to explore.

We pass gnarled, old trees in a mixed woodland, which cast pleasant shade along the dreamy, babbling stream, and walk over roots and moss-covered stones. Narrow bridges and footbridges take us from one side of the stream to the other several times. Captivated by the magnificent natural landscape, we hardly notice that we are gaining height step by step and will soon be leaving the valley behind us again.

(8) This brings us back onto a wider path, which we follow to the right.

(9) At the signpost marked ‘Steinernes Brückle’, we turn left. We now walk steeply uphill along the Kirchweg; a few metres later, we emerge from the forest and can already make out the first houses of Altburg.

(10) Shortly afterwards, we reach the village, walk downhill along Schwarzwaldstraße and then turn left.

(11) We turn right and walk along Theodor Dierlamm Straße to the Farmhouse Museum.
We walk past St Martin’s Church. Finally, we follow the yellow diamond to the left along Schwarzwaldstraße out of Altburg.

(12) We turn left onto Willy-Reichert-Straße and then right into Bäckergäßle. We can look out across a vast flower-filled meadow towards Calw, the Nagold Valley and the Gäu hills on the opposite side.

(13) We continue at a leisurely pace downhill, passing a cemetery and the village of Alzenberg on our right. We follow Wimbergweg to the right, then turn left immediately and keep to the right at the fork, walking along the Hagbrunnenbach on a path lined with dense trees.

(14) At the signpost marked ‘Wimberg Wurstbrunnenbach’, we reach a tarmac road and follow it to the right. We then take the Vorstadtweg through the Calw municipal forest into the suburbs.

(15) At Burgsteige, we turn right and head back to the starting point. Here, we can round off the walk in one of the inviting restaurants (S/E).

Travelling by car:

• A8 motorway from Karlsruhe: take the Pforzheim-West exit (approx. 25 km); continue on the B463 towards Calw
• A8 motorway from Ulm/Stuttgart: Take the Leonberg exit (approx. 30 km), then continue along the B295 towards Weil der Stadt and on to Calw
• A81 motorway from the south/Lake Constance: take the Gärtringen-Stadtmitte exit (approx. 20 km), then continue on the K 1075; near Deckenpfronn, turn left onto the K 1022. At the roundabout, take the first exit and continue on the B 296 towards Calw.

Travelling by train:

• Pforzheim – Calw – Horb – Tübingen route (Kulturbahn).
• Long-distance train services (EC, IC, ICE) are best accessed via Karlsruhe, with connecting trains via Pforzheim (Kulturbahn) to Calw.
• If travelling via Stuttgart, we recommend continuing your journey on the S6 S-Bahn from Stuttgart to Weil der Stadt, then changing to bus route 670 to Calw.

Travelling by bus:

• Greater Stuttgart area: Bus route 670 (DB Bahn Regiobus / Volz); (Calw–Weil der Stadt) connection to the S6
• Böblingen / Sindelfingen area: Bus route 763, DB Bahn Regiobus; Calw–Böblingen (connection to the S1)

Public transport starting point:
Calw railway station
Bischofstraße 10
75365 Calw

Parking at the starting point:
Calwer Markt car park
ZOB multi-storey car park
Kaufland car park
Haggasse car park

Other parking options:
Car park at the old railway station
Car park at the Walther-Lindner Sports Hall
Car park at the Stadtgarten

Equipment: Sturdy footwear

ℹ️ Contact:
Calw Tourist Information
Marktplatz 7
75365 Calw

ℹ️ Places of interest:
Calw Market Square Market Square
75365 Calw

St Peter and Paul Monastery Complex (4)
In the 11th and 12th centuries, this former Benedictine monastery was the most important German reform monastery north of the Alps; however, it was partially and severely destroyed in 1692 during fierce fighting against French troops. We enter the freely accessible grounds through the Lower Gate, and it quickly becomes clear to us that we want to linger here for a while. We are greeted by ruins of great architectural significance, featuring relics from various architectural styles: the Romanesque columned basilica, which was once the largest Romanesque church in south-west Germany, and the ruins of a Renaissance castle, where the elm tree celebrated in Ludwig Uhland’s poetry until 1989 once stood. Towering above the Gothic cloister stands the late-Gothic St Mary’s Chapel, which has remained intact. Since 2007, the monastery grounds have provided the backdrop for the ‘Calwer Klostersommer in Hirsau’, a festival featuring big names and high-calibre productions. We should not miss the Monastery Museum in Hirsau. Here, we can immerse ourselves in the medieval art history of Hirsau and experience the monastery town as a former centre of Benedictine reforms in Germany

Farmhouse Museum (11)
In this building, erected in 1813, we can see how a farmhouse in the Calw Forest – comprising a living area, stables and a barn – was furnished at the turn of the century. A number of historical tools used for housework and farm work are also on display. Guided tours take place from April to October, on the first Sunday of every month from 2 pm to 5 pm. After visiting the museum, it’s well worth taking a look at St Martin’s Church. The oldest part of this former fortified church, with its medieval ceiling paintings, is the 12th-century tower.

🍽️ Places to eat:
Gasthof Hirsch
Schwarzwaldstraße 80
75365 Calw-Altburg

Café im Kloster
Klosterhof 7
75365 Calw-Hirsau

Restaurant Zum Alten Calwer
Lederstraße 1
75365 Calw

Euro Pasteria
Lederstraße
75365 Calw

Accommodation:
Hotel Kloster Hirsau
Wildbader Straße 2
75365 Calw

Wirtshaus zum Löwen
Wildbader Straße 20
75365 Calw

Hotel Rössle
Hermann-Hesse Platz 2
75365 Calw