Why this ride
From Ellwangen it runs 101 km to Ellwangen; allow about 1 h 41 of riding. It goes by way of Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59, Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh and back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85 and Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 101 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 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 12/69 to 12/85
In the forests near Ellwangen the Roman frontier changes character. Here the Upper Germanic Limes, with its timber palisade and ditch, meets the Raetian Limes, which the Romans eventually built as a stone wall, and the stretch of watchtowers numbered 12/69 to 12/85 runs through the farmland and woods east of the Jagst. Archaeologists number the towers with slashes and digits, which makes them sound like spare parts, but each one was a small stone or timber post with a few soldiers watching the border, passing signals along the line. Together they form part of the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85 is where the day begins. Next is Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59.
2. Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59
The Romans called it the edge of the world they cared about, and in the Rems valley east of Schwäbisch Gmünd you can still trace where they drew the line. A string of watchtower sites, numbered by archaeologists along the stretch between Mögglingen, Heuchlingen and Böbingen, marks the course of the Raetian Limes, the frontier that guarded the province of Raetia in the second and third centuries. Here the frontier was a stone wall, which later locals, puzzled by the long ruined bank, called the Teufelsmauer, the Devil's Wall.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 comes up about 28 km into the recorded legs. Next is Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh.
3. Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh
On the southern edge of Schwäbisch Gmünd, near the Schirenhof farm, the outline of a Roman fort and the foundations of its bath house lie in the grass, with walls and hypocaust heating systems laid out for visitors to see. The fort guarded the point where the Upper Germanic Limes met the Raetian Limes, the two great frontier lines of Roman Germany, and a civilian settlement grew up around it. The site is part of the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire, and it is one of the more rewarding Limes stops in Baden-Württemberg, with visible remains and a lovely setting above the town.
Read the complete Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 50 km into the recorded legs you reach Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh. Next is back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59.
4. back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59, late in the day. Next is Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85.
5. Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85 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 12/69 to 12/85. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85 to Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59
Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85 → Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 to Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh
Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 → Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh to back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59
Fort site and civil settlement of Schirenh → back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 to Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85
back through Watchtowers WP 12/40 to 12/59 → Watchtowers WP 12/69 to 12/85 is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.