Pfalzfeld: Cycling and Hiking Trails, Local History

For a stay in Pfalzfeld, two types of excursion stand out: the Schinderhannes Cycle Path along a former railway line, and the Baybach Springs Route along forest and meadow paths. There are also reminders of the area’s railway and local history. If you are looking for a hotel in Pfalzfeld, these highlights can help you plan your trip around cycling, hiking, or culture.

Cycling on the Schinderhannes Cycle Path

The regional Schinderhannes Cycle Path offers 38 kilometers along a former railway line between Emmelshausen, Kastellaun, and Simmern/Hunsrück. The cycle path from Pfalzfeld to Simmern was created on the former railway track after rail service ended in 1988 and the tracks were removed. Its conversion makes the change from railway to cycle traffic easy to trace. The Boppard–Simmern railway was built in 1906; water towers were then used to supply steam locomotives with water for operation.

Gleis 3 is located right next to the Schinderhannes Cycle Path and serves regional dishes, with seating indoors and in the beer garden. It also offers bicycle repairs and a charging point for e-bikes; the amenities include a nature-inspired playground and boules. For cycling travelers, the repair and charging options and proximity to the cycle route are particularly useful. Seating areas and regional dishes provide another place to stop, while the playground and boules appeal to other leisure interests.

Hiking on the Baybach Springs Route

The Baybach Springs Route is a joint project by Pfalzfeld, Lingerhahn, and Hausbay. It follows walkable forest and meadow paths and offers wide-ranging views along the way. Its route is laid out around the spring streams that converge in Hausbay to form the Baybach. Thirty-two kilometers later, the Baybach reaches the Moselle. This puts the route’s landscape in context: its focus is on the spring streams, while the Baybach continues on to the Moselle.

A description from 2022 mentions a hiking car park near Gleis 3 with space for 25 cars and two motorhomes; it serves as the starting and ending point of the Baybach Springs Route. There are rest areas with loungers and benches at Pfalzfelder Markt. The Getränkebaum is also located there, approximately halfway along the hike; this attraction includes two natural seating areas. This provides different points of reference for the route: the start and finish at the car park, and a rest area at the market about halfway along.

Sights and local history

Sights along the Baybach Springs Route include the Pfalzfeld Obelisk and the water tower at the railway station. The water tower can be seen along the route and is 18 meters high. The railway’s history extends beyond the cycle path: after the Boppard–Simmern railway was built in 1906, water towers supplied steam locomotives with water for operation; rail service ended in 1988.

The Celtic column is also represented in several locations: the original is in the Rheinisches Landesmuseum in Bonn, while copies stand in the center of Pfalzfeld and beside the Schinderhannes Cycle Path. The copies thus provide two different points of reference in the area, while the original is in the museum in Bonn. Together with the obelisk and the water tower, they add further historical themes to the routes.

Discover more destinations: Reich, Heyweiler, Lautzenhausen, Morshausen, Braunshorn, Budenbach, Dommershausen, Beltheim

To the regional travel overview: Rhein-Hunsrück.