Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort and Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
219 km
Riding-time estimate
4 h 32
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
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Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
A 219 km round trip from Nassau - roughly 4 h 32 in the saddle. On the way it passes Watchtower WP 1/60, Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the, Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a and back through Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the.
Scenic road chapters
Moselle Wine Route
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For 24 km this is Moselle Wine Route, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
Length
25 km
Named road
Moselle Wine Route
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort
Between the Lahn and the Rhine, the Roman frontier crossed a high, wooded plateau known locally as the Einrich, and the watchtowers from 2/7 to 2/13 stood on this stretch, near the village of Dachsenhausen. In the forest, the earth bank and ditch can still be followed, and small forts, built to house the soldiers who manned the towers, have left their outlines in the ground. Here, as elsewhere in Germany, the Limes belongs to the frontiers of the Roman Empire on the World Heritage list, but the forest is quiet, and you may walk the line for an hour without meeting anyone.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort is where the day begins. Next is Watchtower WP 1/60.
2. Watchtower WP 1/60
Above Koblenz, on the edge of the Westerwald, the potters of Höhr-Grenzhausen have been making grey, salt-glazed stoneware with cobalt-blue decoration for centuries, giving this corner of Germany its nickname, the Kannenbäckerland, the land of jug bakers. In the forest nearby, the site of Roman watchtower WP 1/60 on the Upper German-Raetian Limes is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage Site. The tower was one of hundreds along the frontier, a wooden or stone structure from which soldiers watched the land beyond and signalled to their neighbours.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtower WP 1/60 comes up 25 km in. Next is Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the.
3. Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the
Here is where the Upper German-Raetian Limes, the longest stretch of Roman frontier in Europe, begins. The Romans started the line at the Rhine near Rheinbrohl and ran it up over the hills of the Westerwald, then on through the Taunus and beyond for more than five hundred kilometres to the Danube. The section with watchtowers numbered WP 1/11 to 1/20 follows the first climb away from the river through the forests above Rheinbrohl, Hammerstein and Niederbreitbach. Most of the towers survive only as low mounds of stone in the woods, but the course of the frontier ditch and rampart can often be traced on foot, and there are information boards and a few reconstructions along the way.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
50 km in you reach Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the. Next is Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a.
4. Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a
Höhr-Grenzhausen is a town that makes things out of mud. The Westerwald plateau here sits on one of Europe's finest deposits of stoneware clay, and for centuries potters have dug it, thrown it and fired it in salt-glaze kilns to make grey-and-blue jugs, tankards and storage jars. The area is called the Kannenbäckerland, the land of the jug bakers, and its pots were shipped down the Rhine and across the world. The Westerwald Ceramics Museum in Höhr-Grenzhausen tells the story, and several workshops in town still sell hand-made pieces. Take a mug home and you will be surprised how heavy it is.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort closes the day.
Leg by leg
Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort to Watchtower WP 1/60
Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort → Watchtower WP 1/60 is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtower WP 1/60 to Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the
Watchtower WP 1/60 → Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the to Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a
Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the → Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a to back through Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the
Limessection between watchtowers WP 1/60 a → back through Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the to back through Watchtower WP 1/60
back through Watchtowers WP 1/11 to 1/20 including the → back through Watchtower WP 1/60 is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Watchtower WP 1/60 to Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort
back through Watchtower WP 1/60 → Watchtowers WP 2/7 and 2/13 including fort is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.