Why this ride
111 km from Glashütten to Glashütten, about 1 h 52 of riding. It goes by way of Watchtower WP 3/23*, Fortlet Adolfseck and back through Watchtower WP 3/23*.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the and Fortlet Adolfseck
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 111 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 52
- 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 3/45 to 3/52 including the
High in the Taunus hills northwest of Frankfurt, the Upper German Limes runs along the main ridge, and here, between Glashütten and Schmitten, a series of watchtower sites and the remains of a small fort follow the frontier through dense beech and spruce forest. The bank and ditch of the Limes are still clearly visible, winding over the hills like a long scar, and the area is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage site. Nearby, on the Kleiner Feldberg, lie the remains of a Roman fort, and a few kilometres east, the Saalburg near Bad Homburg is a fully reconstructed fort with a museum, the best place in Germany to imagine life on the frontier.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the is where the day begins. Next is Watchtower WP 3/23*.
2. 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* comes up about 24 km into the recorded legs. Next is Fortlet Adolfseck.
3. 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
about 48 km into the recorded legs you reach Fortlet Adolfseck. Next is back through Watchtower WP 3/23*.
4. 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*, late in the day. Next is Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the.
5. Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the 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 3/45 to 3/52 including the. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the to Watchtower WP 3/23*
Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the → Watchtower WP 3/23* is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtower WP 3/23* to Fortlet Adolfseck
Watchtower WP 3/23* → Fortlet Adolfseck is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fortlet Adolfseck to back through Watchtower WP 3/23*
Fortlet Adolfseck → back through Watchtower WP 3/23* is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Watchtower WP 3/23* to Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the
back through Watchtower WP 3/23* → Watchtowers WP 3/45 to 3/52 including the is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.