Westerwald Lake District - 7-pond hike on the Nordschleife

Description

Starting from the adventure playground between Steinen and Dreifelden, we will soon reach the nature reserve at the Dreifelder Weiher. We enjoy the calming view over the gentle waves and walk over forest paths and boardwalks through the alder-lined wetland. We take plenty of time for the display boards and quietly observe the extraordinary bird life that is at home here. With the Dreifelder Weiher firmly in view, we follow the path until we come to Langenbaum towards Steinebach a.d. Turn off Wied, where we can admire the cultural monument Talburgruine. Past the bakery, we soon come back to a meadow path and into the Steinebach sculpture park. Five sculptures with accompanying information boards were created here by local artists. Via Schmidthahn, the path soon leads us past the Hofmannsweiher to the west bank of the Dreifelder Weihers. With the Haidenweiher we pass another body of water in the lake district and hike back to the Steinen-Dreifelden adventure playground via forest paths.

Brief description

7 ponds have given this hiking route its name and on 16 display boards we experience the area of the Westerwald Lake District at selected points.

Approach

From Hachenburg (north): We leave Hachenburg via Steinebacher Straße. At the end of the village we follow the L292 to Steinebach. In Steinebach we follow the Hachenburger Straße until we follow the L292 again at the end of the village. We follow this road to the end and then turn left onto the B8. We follow the B8 to Steinen, where we turn left into Lindenstrasse. From the end of the village we follow the K138 for about 1.5 kilometers until we turn right into the parking lot of the Steinen-Dreifelden adventure playground.

From Selters (southwest): We drive over the L304 to Freilingen. In Freilingen we turn left into Hohe Straße. After Freilingen we turn right onto the L303, which we follow for about 2.5 kilometers until we turn left onto the K1. We follow this street until the parking lot of the adventure playground Steinen-Dreifelden is on the left.

From Westerburg (east): We leave Westerburg via Langenhahner Straße and turn right at the end of the street onto the L288. Follow this street to Hinterkirchen, where we turn left into Westerburger Straße. At the intersection with the B255 / Koblenzer Straße we turn left and immediately afterwards slightly right into Freilinger Straße. We continue to follow the L304 until we turn left from Wölferlinger Straße (previously L304) in Freilingen into Hohe Straße. We leave Hohe Straße after Freilingen to the right onto the L303. After about half a kilometer we turn left onto the K1. We follow this road until we turn left to the parking lot at the Steinen-Dreifelden adventure playground.

Public transport

Take the 433 bus from Hachenburg to Seeburg, Steinebach an der Wied. From there it's about a 15-minute walk to the Steinen-Dreifelden adventure playground. The hike can also start and end at this point.

Taxi company:
Taxi Schmidt: Hachenburg, Tel .: 02662/6119 or 02662/6688
Taxi Uwe Bischoff: Hachenburg, Tel.: 02662/944444
Taxi Kappi-Tullius: Hachenburg, Tel.: 02662/939390
Taxi Hetzler: Selters, Tel.: 02626/6445

Parking

Steinebach an der Wied: Free parking space opposite the Haus am See campsite, Steinebacher Straße 1, 57629 Steinebach an der Wied

Free parking space at the Seeburg cemetery, Steinebacher Straße, 57629 Steinebach an der Wied

Dreifelden: Free parking space at the golf course in Dreifelden, Steinebacher Straße, 57629 Dreifelden

Free of charge Parking lot at the entrance to Dreifelden, Steinebacher Straße, 57629 Dreifelden (opposite the parking lot of the golf course there is a street leading to the parking lot)

Steinen:
Free car park at the Steinen / Dreifelden adventure playground, Seeburger Strasse, 56244 Steinen

Directions

This hike starts from the adventure playground between Steinen and Dreifelden in the area of ​​the Westerwald lake district, in order to open up the northern part of the Sieben-Weiher-Weg. For many hikers, the entire Sieben-Weiher-Weg with over 30km route length is probably a bit too strenuous as a day hike. The Nordschleife described here is ideal as a shorter but varied variant.

Starting from the parking lot, we follow the signs of the well-known Westerwaldsteig into the nearby forest. Partly over small footbridges and narrow paths, we hike through a wetland to the bank of the Dreifelder Weiher. With the Dreifelder Weiher firmly in view, we continue to just before the outskirts of Dreifelden, where we leave the Westerwaldsteig to the left. Shortly afterwards we come across the signs for another very popular hiking trail in the Westerwald, the Wiedweg.

Following the marking of the Wiedweg, we hike a short distance over open fields, then immediately head for the bank of the Dreifelder Weiher again. A narrow footpath now always leads us along the pond to the K2. Here we soon head north and reach the small town of Langenbaum and later Steinebach a. d. Re In Steinebach we walk past the “castle ruins”, and on the “sculptures path” we continue to the small Hofmannsweiher.

We follow the north bank of the Hofmann Weiher, and after a few meters we can see the Dreifelder Weiher again. We keep to the right, and another small trail leads us along the K1 to the Seeburg and a little later to the banks of the third pond of this round - the Haidenweiher. From here it is only 500m until we reach the parking lot again and the entertaining circuit closes.

Safety instructions

• Wear sturdy shoes and suitable clothing that is suitable for the weather and protects you from the cold and wet or from the heat and sun.
• Take plenty of fluids with you. There are not many places to stop for refreshments.
• Please put on suitable hiking shoes on the way, which will give you sufficient grip even on slippery and steep or rocky and uneven paths.
• If you are of the opinion that certain sections of the path are not accessible to you then you should bypass this. Especially in adverse weather conditions, near-natural paths can lead to muddy and slippery passages.
• Especially in autumn, it is important to ensure that the leaves lying on the ground can cover bumps, roots, stones or holes in the path. You should expect this kind of obstacle to the path when you go on a hike.
• Although the path is consistently very well marked, you should always have a suitable hiking map with you for safety reasons.

Tips

Enjoy a great view of the numerous ponds from one of the benches.

Literature

Topographic map 1: 25000 Ferienland Westerwald sheet 1, ISBN 978-3-89637-253-6

Destination

Steinen-Dreifelden adventure playground, Seeburger Strasse, 56244 Steinen

Starting Point

Steinen-Dreifelden adventure playground, Seeburger Strasse, 56244 Steinen