Walking tour of Black Forest Germany – 06N/07Days

Arrival in Feldberg – onwards to Falkau

Arrival Day: at Hotel Peterle (the first of two nights here).
As your first night’s accommodation is on the day of travel, Day 1 is your first day of walking.

Choice of walks from Feldberg-Falkau: 13km to 19.5km

This challenging (but highly recommended) option begins with a train ride to Bärental – free with your travel guest card (Konuskarte). The route then takes you via Zweiseenblick (‘two lake view’), offering vistas over Schluchsee and Titisee, to then ascend Feldberg – the highest peak in the Black Forest – as far as the Bismarck monument. You descend by cable car (to be paid locally) for great views over Feldsee which you then circumnavigate before returning via the Raimartihof, which offers traditional food, very popular with locals.

Shepherd Boys’ Trail: 14km, 5.5hrs; ascent/descent 385m
Our second option follows the ‘shepherd boys’ trail’ through a rolling pasture, traversing both sides of this picturesque valley.

Schluchsee: 13km, 4.5hrs; ascent/descent 140m
Alternatively, you could catch the train to Schluchsee (free with your guest card) to make a circuit of this beautiful lake – one of the cleanest in Germany. There are sandy coves from which to bathe, abundant birdlife, and a nice mix of forested and lakeside trails – plus a good restaurant for lunch. You return by rail before a short walk back to your hotel.

Feldberg-Falkau to Alpersbach: Approx 15.5km, 6hrs; ascent 575m/descent 555m

Ascend above the valley floor to enjoy panoramic views back to where you’ve come from, passing the typical farmsteads of the region before entering the forest to find a hidden lake. Emerging from the trees, the trail descends gently into the tranquil idyll of Alpersbach to reach your Hotel.

Choice of walks from Alpersbach: Approx 4.5km to 18km

Ravenna Gorge: 10.5km, 4.5hrs; ascent/descent 470m
Descend through a beautiful forest to reach the Ravenna Gorge viaduct that spans it (a target for Allied bombing raids during World War Two). Enjoy an enchanting path through the gorge itself before returning along the Löffeltal (‘Spoon Valley’) by a fast-flowing river as you pass a succession of small, water-driven sawmills (sparked once a year on Mühlentag) and an old smithy, where metal was once fashioned into spoons and forks.

Titisee: 8.5km, 3hrs; ascent/descent 185m
Shorter option: 4.5km, 1.5hrs; longer option: 18km, 7hrs
Take a taxi (to be paid locally) to the attractive town of Hinterzarten (famous for ski jumping), then continue by train (using your Konuskarte) to the popular resort of Titisee. Here, there are cafés and restaurants aplenty by the water’s edge, so pause for lunch or refreshments before following a lakeside trail into the forest and meadows above. Return to Hinterzarten by train, then take a taxi (to be paid locally) for the final leg.
For a shorter day, choose to walk only between Alpersbach and Hinterzarten. If you would prefer a full day on foot, it is possible to walk both ways between Alpersbach and Hinterzarten and combine this with the circuit around Titisee.

Alpersbach to Kirchzarten: Approx 13km, 5hrs; ascent 305m/descent 905m

The route to Kirchzarten is a real highlight: after ascending gently to a high memorial with a 360-degree panorama, then pausing at the Hinterwaldkopf Hütte to soak up the views, you descend gradually via a beautiful valley into the rolling meadows surrounding Kirchzarten, where you spend your last two nights in the center at the Hotel Die Krone Or Similar.

Choice of walks from Kirchzarten: Approx 9.5km to 14km

Look at the countryside : 9.5km, 3.5hrs; ascent 85m/descent 905m
To access this highly recommended route, you catch a bus to Schauinsland (using your Konuskarte). Schauinsland literally means ‘look at the countryside’, and you will come to see why as great views open up back to Feldberg and ahead to Freiburg and the Rhine plain, during an exhilarating descent through pine and fir forest.

St Peter: 14km, 5hrs; ascent 295m/descent 615m
Take a local bus (using your Konuskarte) to the picturesque town of St Peter with its medieval monastery cloisters. Descend along a gentle trail across open pastures and through woodland to the pretty settlement of Maria Lindenberg, then back into the Dreisamtal Valley to Himmelreich for the final return leg to Kirchzarten (alternatively, you can catch a local train from Himmelreich).

Kirchzarten to Freiburg: Approx 16km, 5hrs; ascent 400m/descent 500m

Setting off for Freiburg, your route takes you along the valley floor before ascending through the forest emerging out with panoramic views over this sunny and hugely attractive university town. Here, you stay two nights at the elegant, 4-star Hotel Oberkirch, right by the Münsterplatz.

Explore Freiburg

You have a full day to explore Freiburg using our included self-guided walking notes. Wander along the historic streets of the old town to learn about the culture and history of this fascinating city. As you explore, don’t forget to stop at one of many cafés and beer gardens you’ll come across where you can enjoy typical Badisch cuisine.

Highlights include the Münster (minster), boasting possibly ‘the most beautiful tower in Christianity’, which, at 116 meters high, was completed in 1330; the Old Town Hall of 1559 which now houses the Tourist Information Office; the Schwabentor (or Swabian gate), the oldest crossing of the River Dreisam; and the Bächle (or miniature canals), originally used for providing of water for cleaning sewers, though today they are much sweeter; as well as vestiges, mainly gates, of the city’s ancient fortifications. Be careful where you tread for there is an age-old saying that “if you fall in, you’ll marry someone from Freiburg”