Watchtowers WP 9/70 to 9/99a including the and Watchtowers WP 9/14 to 9/32 including the

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Watchtowers WP 9/70 to 9/99a including the

   Mainhardt sits on a ridge in the Swabian-Franconian Forest, and the Roman frontier ran right through it, on its way south in one of the longest straight lines ever drawn across European landscape. Here, the Upper Germanic Limes runs for some eighty kilometres from Walldürn to near Welzheim almost perfectly straight, ignoring hills and valleys, as if surveyors had laid a ruler on the map. The watchtowers numbered in this section stood along that line in the forest, and Mainhardt had a fort, whose site is marked in the village, with a small museum.

   Read the complete Watchtowers WP 9/70 to 9/99a 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 9/70 to 9/99a including the is where the day begins. Next is Watchtowers WP 9/33 to 9/35.

2. 2. Watchtowers WP 9/33 to 9/35

   Öhringen had not one but two Roman forts, known today as the Bürgkastell and the Rendelkastell, both on the Upper Germanic Limes, which ran past the town on its way south. The watchtowers numbered here were part of that frontier, and the town grew partly on the remains of the Roman settlement that clustered around the forts. Little is visible above ground, but finds are displayed in the local museum, and the line of the Limes can be followed on foot or by bike through the surrounding countryside.

   Read the complete Watchtowers WP 9/33 to 9/35 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Watchtowers WP 9/33 to 9/35 comes up about 25 km into the recorded legs. Next is Watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41.

3. 3. Watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41

   Somewhere between Walldürn and the hills north of Stuttgart, the Roman surveyors drew a line on the map and simply refused to bend it. For about eighty kilometres, the Upper Germanic Limes runs almost perfectly straight across hill and valley, one of the most remarkable feats of ancient surveying in Europe. The watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41 near Osterburken and Adelsheim lie on that straight stretch, and like the rest of the frontier they are part of the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire. Most are now low mounds in fields and woods, but here and there you will find a reconstructed tower or a stretch of wall to give you an idea of what it looked like.

   Read the complete Watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 57 km into the recorded legs you reach Watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41. Next is Watchtowers WP 9/14 to 9/32 including the.

4. 4. Watchtowers WP 9/14 to 9/32 including the

   For about eighty kilometres through northern Württemberg, the Roman frontier runs in a nearly perfectly straight line, ignoring hills, valleys and rivers as if someone had drawn it with a ruler on a map. Surveyors still argue about how the Romans managed it. The stretch with watchtowers 9/14 to 9/32, near Öhringen in the Hohenlohe region, lies along this remarkable line, and Öhringen itself grew from Roman forts, two of them, which guarded the frontier here. The line is part of the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire, and the Limes trail follows it through fields and forests.

   Read the complete Watchtowers WP 9/14 to 9/32 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 9/14 to 9/32 including the, about halfway. Next is back through Watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41.

5. 5. back through Watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Watchtowers WP 8/31 to 8/41 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 8/31 to 8/41 sits at 105 km, about halfway. Next is back through Watchtowers WP 9/33 to 9/35.

6. 6. back through Watchtowers WP 9/33 to 9/35

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Watchtowers WP 9/33 to 9/35 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 9/33 to 9/35 comes up about 151 km into the recorded legs. Next is Watchtowers WP 9/70 to 9/99a including the.

7. 7. Watchtowers WP 9/70 to 9/99a including the

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Watchtowers WP 9/70 to 9/99a 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 9/70 to 9/99a including the closes the day.