Trail Name: Rotweinpfad
Trail Type: Short distance circuit trail; well-maintained and almost exclusively paved, good marking on the trail.
Length:
Total – 3.8 kilometers/2.3 miles
Convenient to: Baden-Baden, Germany
Marking:
Purple grapes with a green leaves on a white (or yellow) background
If you have never seen the Baroque architecture of southern Germany, then you are missing a treat. The extravagance of the forms, the flamboyance of the colors, are not usually found in nature, which is what made such an interesting juxtaposition on this winter hike.
The trail, entitled Wein Barock, presumably intended as its highlights the pilgrimage basilica of Birnau, and the vineyards surrounding it. Equally as impressive to me, was the scenic beauty of the Swiss Alps, and Lake Constance, also enjoyed from this trail.
This trail is set entirely in the township of Uhldingen-Muehlhofen, made up of the villages of Unteruhldingen, Oberuhldingen, and Muehlhofen, which progress respectively, from the lake front to the hills. The circuit officially begins in Oberuhldingen, proceeding from its homey center, and quickly comes to the surrounding countryside.
What I Learned
Germany’s Baden wine region contains a district on the shores of Lake Constance, or Bodensee, as it is called in German. The lake itself has two distinct parts: the Bodensee, and the Untersee. Both have vineyards which fall under Grosslage Sonnenufer. This post comments on the Kirchhalde slope by Uhldingen, on the Bodensee itself.
The lake and the northern shoreline’s southern exposure to sun help to warm this area, making it a garden spot for Germany. Vineyards are tucked among the villages and religious foundations, along with fruit trees and fields of vegetables, grains and flowers. In this district, vineyards grow primarily in gravelly, moraine clay soils. The Kirchhalde slope, with a nice south, south-westerly exposure, is fairly pronounced, but overall, the elevation is less than 500 meters.
Trail Name: Wein-Barock
Trail Type: Mid-distance circuit trail; almost exclusively paved, well maintained, but the marking along the route, while excellent, is not trail specific. (See the Itinerary below for specific itinerary points.)
Length: total: 10 kilometers/ 6 miles
Convenient to: Konstanz, and Friedrichshafen, Germany
Marking:
Yellow rectangular signs with black lettering, indicating direction to major itinerary points. (Not trail specific)
When the itinerant musicians of Mackenbach, in the Pfalz, crested the ridge from the northwest, they beheld the town of Freinsheim below. They announced their arrival with lively music, letting the town know they had arrived. Over the next couple of days, they would play, for coins, wine and food. Freinsheim, one of the northern most wine villages on the Deutsche Weinstrasse, has named this section of vineyard the “Musikanten-Buckel”, or the hump of hill where the musicians began to play. Freinsheim is also one of many villages along the Deutsche Weinstrasse that has several festivals throughout the year. Two of them involve “wine wandering”, which is how I came be in the village.
Traditionally, the January wine wandering trail follows mostly along an established trail called the Musikantenbuckel Wanderweg. But every year, on the last weekend of January, the trail is identified as the Rotweinwanderung (Red wine wandering). So, on a cold, dark and grey winter afternoon, I, and hundreds of other people, dressed warmly, with sturdy waterproof boots, set off along the trail, which starts in the village.
What I Learned:
The Pfalz wine region in the southern Rhineland Palatinate (Rheinland Pfalz, in German) has two divisions: Suedliche Weinstrasse and Mittelhaardt. The Mittelhaardt has some of the best-known vineyards. While the official German quality system does not necessarily recognize particular sites as being better than others, many vineyards, and even sections of vineyards, have names. Some of these named parcels, at least among the vintners, have better reputations than others. Thus, even though the official quality system does not focus on particular sites as superior, the VDP (Verband Deutscher Praedikats- und Qualitaetsweinguter) association members will name particular sites on their wine bottle labels as an Erste Lage (loosely equivalent to a Premier Cru site in France), or as a Grosse Lage, identified on the label as GG (for Grosses Gewaechs) (again, in VDP terms, loosely equivalent to a Grand Cru site in France). Some of the sites designated by VDP vintners as Grosse Lage in the Mittelhaardt around Bad Duerkheim include Bad Duerkheim’s Michelsberg parcel, and Ungstein’s Weilberg and Herrenberg parcels. Although Freinsheim does not have any Grosse Lage, it does have the Erste Lage of Schwarzes Kreuz, and the named parcel of Musikantenbuckel. The names can date from a long way back, and often have an interesting history associated with them. For example, the Musikantenbuckel received its name from the practice of itinerant musicians of yore travelling to Freinsheim, and beginning to play their instruments, once they reached that spot. (Being on the downside of a slope – good for vines, by the way – from that point apparently, townspeople could both see and hear the music men approaching through the vines.)
Trail Name: Musikantenbuckel Wanderweg
Trail Type: Short distance circuit; well-maintained and almost exclusively paved with tarmac or concrete, marking on the trail good throughout
Length:
Total – 7.5 kilometers/ miles
Convenient to: Bad Durkheim, Germany
Marking: Musician playing a horn.
Trail Description:
A family-friendly, short circuit passes up and along a gentle slope, through the village and vineyards, (meaning it is almost completely unshaded), with views over the village and valley, and out to hills. This trail is paved for almost all of it, and where not, there are paved alternatives.
Trailhead:
Freinsheim – Hauptstrasse, at the old Rathaus
Parking:
Freinsheim – Parkplatz P3, Weisenheimerstr
Freinsheim – festival parking area along L522/Talweide. Note: only during the festival weekend!
Public Transportation Options:
Rail: Deutsche Bahn regional trains provide frequent regional train service to Freinsheim, from Gruenstadt to the north, and points south, including Neustadt an der Weinstrasse and Bad Duerkheim.
Bus: Buses connect Freinsheim with Bad Durkheim, and other towns in the area. Check VRN.de for schedules to and from Freinsheim.
Suggested Stages: Not applicable
Trail Itinerary-Reference Points: (Clockwise)
Freinsheim: by the old Rathaus, Korngasse-Wallstrasse-2 Querstr-Wenjenstr, Schubertstr-Franz-Liszt-Str, path straight across, the left along L522, past Sportplatz (soccer field), Orchards and vineyards, and the Weinbergsgarten (rest area with benches and picnic table), cross L455, parallel L455, then cross it again, vineyards, cross path across L522/Talweide
Representative Trail Photo:
Restrooms:
Freinsheim, off Baerengasse
Musikantenbuckel, porta-potties on the trail. Note: only during the festival weekend.
Attractions on or near Trail:
While Freinsheim has no wine-themed museums or exhibits, there are several architectural features of historical interest in the old part of the village.
Tasting along the Trail:
The village of Freinsheim has many wineries (Weingut); and on the day of the Rotweinwanderung, there are half a dozen or so vintners with huts along the trail
Alternative Options:
Hiking: While the Deutsche Weinstrasse Wanderweg, the 96 kilometer-long (almost 60 miles) hiking trail from Bockenheim to the border town of Schweigen-Rechtenbach, passes near Freinsheim, it does not pass through it. Instead, Freinsheim offers a series of short, mostly family-friendly circuits, such as the Wanderweg “Schwarzes Kreuz”, through a named vineyard area.
Biking: Radweg Deutsche Weinstrasse, the 95 kilometer-long (almost 60 miles) cycling trail from Bockenheim to the border town of Schweigen-Rechtenbach), passes through Freinsheim.
Car: Deutsche Weinstrasse, the thematic car route from Bockenheim to the border town of Schweigen-Rechtenbach, passes near Freinsheim.
Additional Information:
Regional: http://www.freinsheim.de/tourismus_wein_und_kultur/uebernachten.html
Trail specific: https://www.outdooractive.com/de/wanderung/pfalz/freinsheim–musikantenbuckelrundweg-durch-die-weinreben/3321889/#dm=1
Comments:
End of January each year, the Musikantenbuckel area is the venue for the Rotweinwanderung, a walking wine and culinary festival. During this weekend, the Rotweinwanderung Weinwanderweg generally follows the same itinerary as the Musikantenbuckel Wanderweg, but is a bit shorter.
Musikantenbuckel refers to a named vineyard parcel. Freinsheim also has two others: Schwarzes Kreuz and Oschelskopf, with a hiking trail through them, the Schwarzes Kreuz trail. Combining this trail with the Musikantenbuckel would cover all of Freinsheim’s named vineyards, and provide a longer (about 14 kilometer) easy hike.
Arriving by train will add about 900 meters. From there follow: Bahnhofstr-Hauptstr, to arrive at the Rathaus, the official start.
On a dark December day, Christmas Eve 2017, the raw wind cut like a knife atop the Hexen Berg above Winningen. The beautiful views of the Moselle Valley from above, belied an ugly past here. Hexen Berg means Witch Mountain, and here, from 1641 to 1651, many so-called witches were cruelly burned alive during a period of great superstition and intolerance.
What I Learned:
Germany’s Moselle River region is as an important wine-producing area in Germany as the Rhine region. Called the “Mosel,” in German, it is also important to the wine industries in Luxembourg, and Lorraine, France. It is the oldest wine producing region in Germany.
The Moselle is famous for its slate. Ribs of the stuff poke out from the earth, and chunks of it cover the ground under the vines. While the Moselle is not as long as the Rhine, it is so diverse as it flows northeast through Germany, that it can be divided into distinct wine areas. Germans refer to these Moselle sections as the Upper Moselle, beginning at the French border, the Middle Moselle, and the Lower Moselle, ending at Koblenz.
Trail Name: Winninger Hexenpfad
Trail Type: Short distance; well-maintained, varied surfaces (grass, earthen, paved; signage good in some places, but lacking in others along the trail
Length: 8 kilometers/5 miles
Convenient to: Koblenz, Germany
Marking: Red witch on a white background (See photo above.)
