Why this ride
364 km from Hammersbach to Hammersbach, about 4 h 55 of riding. On the way it passes Fortlet Wingertsberg, Fortlet Lochmühle, Watchtower WP 3/23* and Watchtower WP 2/31. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel and Watchtower WP 2/31
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 364 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 55
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Fortlet Wingertsberg → Fortlet Lochmühle
This part of the ride is 49 km of Fortlet Wingertsberg → Fortlet Lochmühle.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 49 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel
Marköbel is a village in the eastern Wetterau, the fertile plain north east of Frankfurt, and it stands on the site of a Roman fort that guarded the frontier where it crossed this open country. The fort, with its civilian settlement, the vicus, where merchants, craftsmen and soldiers' families lived, was part of the Upper German Limes, and today little remains above ground, but the village streets still follow parts of the old layout, and a reconstructed section of the frontier and markers explain the history. It is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage Site.
Read the complete Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel is where the day begins. Next is Fortlet Wingertsberg.
2. Fortlet Wingertsberg
Wingertsberg is a low hill on the western edge of the Vogelsberg, near the small town of Hungen in Hesse, and the Roman fortlet that stood here was one of a series of small outposts along the Wetterau Limes. A fortlet held perhaps a few dozen men, enough to watch the line and signal to the main forts. Little survives above ground, so the interest lies mostly in knowing that the frontier ran here, across fields that are now ploughed in neat rows and crossed by farm tracks and cycle paths.
Read the complete Fortlet Wingertsberg write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Fortlet Wingertsberg comes up about 37 km into the recorded legs. Next is Fortlet Lochmühle.
3. Fortlet Lochmühle
The Lochmühle is a small fortlet on the Limes in the Taunus, near Wehrheim and the famous Saalburg, and it guarded a spot where the frontier crossed the valley of the Erlenbach stream. Fortlets like this were small outposts, housing a handful of soldiers who watched the border and controlled traffic, and they formed a link between the watchtowers and the larger forts. Its remains are modest, but the location, in a quiet valley surrounded by forest, has a peaceful charm. The name comes from a nearby mill, now a popular leisure park for families with play areas and farm animals.
Read the complete Fortlet Lochmühle write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 86 km into the recorded legs you reach Fortlet Lochmühle. Next is Watchtower WP 3/23*.
4. Watchtower WP 3/23*
On the wooded ridges near Idstein, the Taunus Limes crossed some of its highest and most remote ground, and Watchtower WP 3/23 is one of the many sites along this stretch. The asterisk in the official label suggests a site whose exact location is uncertain or reconstructed from survey work, which is common along the frontier, where many towers survive only as faint mounds in the forest. Still, walking the Limes trail here, with the bank and ditch running through the beech woods, gives a real sense of the Roman border.
Read the complete Watchtower WP 3/23* write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtower WP 3/23*, about halfway. Next is Watchtower WP 2/31.
5. Watchtower WP 2/31
Holzhausen an der Haide is a small village on the high ground of the western Taunus, between the Rhine and the Lahn, and it has one of the better-preserved Roman fort sites along the Limes. The stone walls of Kastell Holzhausen still stand to a modest height in the fields just outside the village, outlining the fort's rectangle with its rounded corners and gates. Watchtower WP 2/31 belongs to the chain of towers that linked forts like this one along the frontier, and in this open landscape you can easily imagine the signals passing from hill to hill.
Read the complete Watchtower WP 2/31 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtower WP 2/31 sits at 143 km, about halfway. Next is back through Watchtower WP 3/23*.
6. back through Watchtower WP 3/23*
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Watchtower WP 3/23* write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Watchtower WP 3/23* comes up about 239 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Fortlet Lochmühle.
7. back through Fortlet Lochmühle
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Fortlet Lochmühle write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 277 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Fortlet Lochmühle. Next is back through Fortlet Wingertsberg.
8. back through Fortlet Wingertsberg
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Fortlet Wingertsberg write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Fortlet Wingertsberg, late in the day. Next is Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel.
9. Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 364 km.
Leg by leg
Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel to Fortlet Wingertsberg
Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel → Fortlet Wingertsberg is 37 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fortlet Wingertsberg to Fortlet Lochmühle
Fortlet Wingertsberg → Fortlet Lochmühle is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fortlet Lochmühle to Watchtower WP 3/23*
Fortlet Lochmühle → Watchtower WP 3/23* is 61 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtower WP 3/23* to Watchtower WP 2/31
Watchtower WP 3/23* → Watchtower WP 2/31 is 40 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtower WP 2/31 to back through Watchtower WP 3/23*
Watchtower WP 2/31 → back through Watchtower WP 3/23* is 52 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Watchtower WP 3/23* to back through Fortlet Lochmühle
back through Watchtower WP 3/23* → back through Fortlet Lochmühle is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Fortlet Lochmühle to back through Fortlet Wingertsberg
back through Fortlet Lochmühle → back through Fortlet Wingertsberg is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Fortlet Wingertsberg to Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel
back through Fortlet Wingertsberg → Fort site and civil settlement of Marköbel is 37 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.