The Limes crosses the Wetterau, the fertile plain north of Frankfurt, in a long arc, and Watchtower 4/17 is one small point in it. The Wetterau is loess farmland, rich and flat, with wide fields of wheat and sugar beet, and the Romans valued it as an agricultural region, planting farms and estates beside the frontier. The tower itself, as at most of these sites, is represented today by a low mound or a marker, and a short walk will let you see the line of the frontier running across the fields.
Close by is Bad Nauheim, a spa town with salt springs that have been used since the Celtic period, when salt was boiled here for trade. In the early twentieth century the town became a fashionable spa with elegant Jugendstil buildings, a park and a long series of bathing halls, and it remains a handsome place with a relaxed, slightly old-fashioned air. Elvis Presley lived in a house nearby during his military service in the late 1950s, which draws a steady trickle of fans. The Taunus hills to the south rise to wooded ridges, and the Saalburg, a reconstructed Roman fort, lies a short ride away.
The riding here is easy. Country roads cross the Wetterau through villages with timber-framed houses, church towers and orchards, and the surfaces are usually smooth, with long open bends and modest hills. Traffic is heavier near Frankfurt and on motorways, so avoid the commuter hours if possible. In the Taunus the roads climb through forest and are more demanding, and a trip up to the Feldberg is a good addition. Spring blossom and autumn colour are the best times, and in summer the plain can be hot.
Ober-Mörlen, about five kilometres away, is large enough for a bakery and shops, but for dependable fuel and a meal, head to Bad Nauheim or Rosbach vor der Höhe, where there are stations and several cafés. Apple wine, called Ebbelwoi, and green sauce with eggs and potatoes are regional specialities. Take a few minutes to read the marker and look along the line of the frontier, and notice how the road follows the same ground that soldiers once patrolled.