Why this ride
309 km from Bendorf to Bendorf, about 4 h 41 of riding. On the way it passes Fortlet Adolfseck, Fortlet Eichkopf and back through Fortlet Adolfseck.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57 and Fortlet Eichkopf
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 309 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 41
- 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57
This stretch of the Limes sits close to Bendorf and Stromberg, on the plateau above the Rhine near Koblenz, and the watchtowers numbered here, five in all, follow the line as it climbs from the river. The frontier was a controlled boundary: a palisade or bank, a ditch, and a series of towers within sight of each other, with a patrol path behind. Traces survive as low banks in forest and field, and some positions have been marked or partly reconstructed, which makes this a good place to understand how the system worked.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57 is where the day begins. Next is Fortlet Adolfseck.
2. Fortlet Adolfseck
The Aar is a small river that winds north from the Taunus towards the Lahn, through a narrow, wooded valley that has served as a route through the hills since ancient times. Where the Roman frontier crossed the valley near Adolfseck, today a district of Bad Schwalbach, the Romans built a fortlet to control the crossing, a small, square fortification with a garrison of a few dozen soldiers. The remains have been excavated and are marked on the ground, and the stretch of frontier nearby is part of the World Heritage frontiers of the Roman Empire. Above the valley, the ruins of a medieval castle, also called Adolfseck, add another layer of history.
Read the complete Fortlet Adolfseck write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Fortlet Adolfseck comes up about 78 km into the recorded legs. Next is Fortlet Eichkopf.
3. Fortlet Eichkopf
Deep in the forest on the eastern slopes of the Taunus, near Ober-Mörlen, the Romans built a small fortlet known today as Eichkopf, after the wooded hill on which it stands. It was one of the many minor installations along the Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes, the frontier that separated the Roman Empire from the free Germanic tribes, and it housed a small detachment of soldiers who patrolled the line and manned the nearby watchtowers. The outline of the fortlet is still visible as a low rampart and ditch among the trees, and nearby, the line of the frontier itself, with its bank and ditch, can be traced through the forest. It is part of the World Heritage site of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire.
Read the complete Fortlet Eichkopf write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 139 km into the recorded legs you reach Fortlet Eichkopf. Next is back through Fortlet Adolfseck.
4. back through Fortlet Adolfseck
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Fortlet Adolfseck write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Fortlet Adolfseck, late in the day. Next is Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57.
5. Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57 to Fortlet Adolfseck
Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57 → Fortlet Adolfseck is 78 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fortlet Adolfseck to Fortlet Eichkopf
Fortlet Adolfseck → Fortlet Eichkopf is 61 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fortlet Eichkopf to back through Fortlet Adolfseck
Fortlet Eichkopf → back through Fortlet Adolfseck is 89 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Fortlet Adolfseck to Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57
back through Fortlet Adolfseck → Watchtowers WP 1/53 to 1/57 is 81 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.