Why this ride
A 167 km round trip from Langgöns - roughly 2 h 56 in the saddle. It goes by way of Fortlet Eichkopf, Watchtower WP 3/49*, Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the and back through Watchtower WP 3/49*.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 including the and Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 167 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 56
- 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 4/45 to 4/52 including the
North of Frankfurt, the Wetterau opens out as a wide, fertile basin between the Taunus and the Vogelsberg, and the Roman frontier made a long bulge around it to bring this rich farmland inside the empire. This section of the Upper Germanic Limes, with watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52, runs through the woods and fields between Langgöns and Lich, at the northern tip of that bulge. The towers are long gone, but traces of the wall and ditch can still be found in the forest.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 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 4/45 to 4/52 including the is where the day begins. Next is Fortlet Eichkopf.
2. 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
Fortlet Eichkopf comes up about 23 km into the recorded legs. Next is Watchtower WP 3/49*.
3. Watchtower WP 3/49*
High in the Taunus, the wooded hills northwest of Frankfurt, the Roman Limes followed the ridge line, and its watchtowers looked out over the forests to the north. Watchtower WP 3/49, near Schmitten and Glashütten, is one of hundreds of such posts recorded along the frontier, and today its remains lie in the woods, a low mound or a scatter of stones. The Limes path, a long-distance walking trail, follows the line through the forest, and walkers can trace the ditch and bank of the old frontier for kilometres. The whole line is part of the Upper German-Raetian Limes World Heritage site.
Read the complete Watchtower WP 3/49* write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 51 km into the recorded legs you reach Watchtower WP 3/49*. Next is Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the.
4. Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the
In the hills of the Taunus north of Wiesbaden, the Roman frontier ran along the ridges through dense forest, and between watchtowers 3/15 and 3/19 near Idstein, its line can still be traced on the ground. The Romans built an earth bank and ditch, topped with a wooden palisade, with stone watchtowers at regular intervals, close enough to see each other and signal along the line. In the forest, the bank and ditch survive as a long, low ridge and hollow, and the foundations of watchtowers appear as low mounds, sometimes with a few stones visible. The Upper Germanic and Raetian Limes, more than five hundred kilometres long, has been a World Heritage site since 2005.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 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 3/15 to 3/19 including the, about halfway. Next is back through Watchtower WP 3/49*.
5. back through Watchtower WP 3/49*
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Watchtower WP 3/49* 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 3/49* sits at 101 km, about halfway. Next is back through Fortlet Eichkopf.
6. back through Fortlet Eichkopf
Return visit. Read the place description above.
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
back through Fortlet Eichkopf comes up about 137 km into the recorded legs. Next is Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 including the.
7. Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 including the
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 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 4/45 to 4/52 including the closes the day.
Leg by leg
Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 including the to Fortlet Eichkopf
Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 including the → Fortlet Eichkopf is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fortlet Eichkopf to Watchtower WP 3/49*
Fortlet Eichkopf → Watchtower WP 3/49* is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtower WP 3/49* to Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the
Watchtower WP 3/49* → Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the to back through Watchtower WP 3/49*
Watchtowers WP 3/15 to 3/19 including the → back through Watchtower WP 3/49* is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Watchtower WP 3/49* to back through Fortlet Eichkopf
back through Watchtower WP 3/49* → back through Fortlet Eichkopf is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Fortlet Eichkopf to Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 including the
back through Fortlet Eichkopf → Watchtowers WP 4/45 to 4/52 including the is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.