Hessischer Westerwald

Starting point of this varied walk - Kleiner Wäller Hessentagswanderweg - is the 17 m high observation tower Dillblick. Before the start you can enjoy the magnificent panoramic view. From the tower the path leads through the game reserve. The goats, llamas and donkeys are looking forward to your visit. The fallow deer can be observed from a viewing platform. For children there are great play and climbing equipment. On the circular path past the war graves site - in summer you can also make a detour to the outdoor swimming pool - you can walk through paths and streets down to the old town with its many half-timbered houses, alleys and corners, cafés and bistros for a little breather. In the city park you can relax under the shady trees with many seats and playground equipment. The circular path leads through parts of the pedestrian zone past many small stores. Parking facilities at the starting point. Alternatively you can start at the train station. Maps, information and the numerous cafés, bistros and ice-cream parlors in the old town are available at the local tourist information office!

If I wanted to cycle from the Lahn Valley to the Westerwald, I would have to overcome quite a few inclines. What a stroke of luck it is when a former railway line can be used as a cycle path. The former Ulm Valley railway - also known as the "Balkan Express" - was closed in 1976. Today, the railway line has been converted into an attractive cycle path. This allows me to experience and enjoy the low mountain range landscape with few gradients. The cycle path has been developed as a GeoRoute in the GEOPARK Westerwald-Lahn-Taunus. The Ulm Valley Railway was once built to transport raw materials from the Westerwald to the Lahn Valley. Basalt, clay and iron ore were exported from here. Today, I find many relics of mining history along the route, which I learn exciting stories about at beautifully designed rest areas and viewpoints. Shortly after starting high up on the mountain called "Knoten", one of the highest mountains in the Westerwald, I reach the Adolf Weiß monument (Hui-Wäller monument). Adolf Weiß was a true Westerwald farmer and local poet. In 1913, he won a competition for a hiker's greeting. This is still popular today: "Hui! Wäller? Allemol!" The route continues to Beilstein, where I can buy some tasty provisions in the apple shop. And in the village, the BASALT-PARKours awaits with lots of information about the raw material basalt and small climbing facilities for children. A wonderful oasis of peace has been created here. A little further on, between Beilstein and Holzhausen, is the Ulmbachtalsperre reservoir with a restaurant and swimming facilities. Above Ulm, I am greeted by the bronze head of the Erwin Piscator monument, which was erected to the famous citizen in 2016. Erwin Friedrich Maximilian Piscator (17 December 1893 – 30 March 1966) was a German theatre director and producer. Piscator's students in New York were Bea Arthur, Harry Belafonte, Marlon Brando, Tony Curtis, Ben Gazzara, Judith Malina, Walter Matthau, Rod Steiger, Elaine Stritch, Eli Wallach, Jack Creley, and Tennessee Williams. Shortly after Allendorf, I visit the Siegfried Fietz sculpture park. On a walk through the open park, I discover wonderful large sculptures made of wood and stone. Siegfried Fietz (born 25 May 1946) is a German singer-songwriter, composer, music producer and sculptor. He has collaborated with Ivan Rebroff, Clemens Bittlinger, Dieter Falk, Eberhard Weber, Petula Clark, Uwe Kröger, Eva Lind, Bill Ramsey, Edwin Hawkins, Olivia Molina and Coretta Scott King. He developed a Weltraumsinfonie (Space Symphony) with the astronaut James Irwin. A little later, I am drawn to the Outdoor Centre Lahntal, a location with a covered beer garden in the middle of the forest. The centre also hosts events, offers overnight accommodation, canoe hire and parties of all kinds. In Biskirchen, I reach the Lahn cycle path and can refresh myself at the Gertrudisbrunnen healing spring.