Hiking route E6 in Germany - Wandelroute E6 in Duitsland

E6 in Germany

Krusaa/Kupfermühle Flensburg shore see Schleswig Haddeby E1, Haithabu Fahrdorf Brekendorf Kochendorf Kochendorf Eckernförde Keel NAME WATER PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME, E9 Lubecka Guster, E1, E9 PLACE NAME Elbe PLACE NAME Goslar, E11 PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME, E3, E-B-Road PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME, E3 kappeln, Waldsassen, E6, Czech variant PLACE NAME PLACE NAME Bavarian Eisenstein, E6, Czech variant PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME PLACE NAME Three-Country Point Germany, Austria, Czech Republic

The part of the . described here European walking route E6 lies in Germany.

For a complete overview of the E6, see the article Hiking route E6.

With a length of more than 7000 km, the E6 is one of the longest European walking routes managed by the European Hiking Association. More than 1600 km of these are located in Germany. Only in the state Schleswig-Holstein the German part of the E6 is well documented. The rest will be described in detail below.

Character

The German section of the E6 once followed the eastern border of West Germany quite closely. The route not only ran and continues through the east of the peninsula Schleswig-Holstein, but then she followed the Iron Curtain to the border triangle of Germany (Bavaria), Austria and Czech Republic. Here and there, viewpoints and towers offered the opportunity to look at the other Germany, especially the barbed wire barriers, watchtowers, men and fighting dogs of the East German Volkspolizei and guessing the intervening minefields. The E6 no longer has this political charge since the "Wende" in 1989. It is probably needless to say that there is nothing special to see at the aforementioned viewpoints. If you still want to taste the atmosphere of the past, you will have to visit the many small museums along the border. However, they are usually located in the former DDR area and are therefore not affected by the E6.

What has remained is a route that goes through the sparsely populated areas of an industrial state. And as usual, these are areas with an exuberant, sometimes rare, nature. That applies to the jagged hills at Schleswig, beyond the coast Eckernförde, the crossing through the Harz and the lonely forest tracks in the Rhön and the Bavarian Forest. And it is no less true for the many political experiments that the area east of Hitzacker from the first underground nuclear waste storage facility to attempts to shape an alternative society in which green policy (sustainable and small-scale coexistence) is the benchmark. That there is also ancient cultural heritage on the route, ranging from the Viking city of Haithabu via the Hanseatic city Lubecka to the imperial city Goslar makes the E6 all the more attractive. And for those who don't want to lose sight of modern society completely, there are still the car city Wolfsburg and the Aussiedlerstad Marktredwitz. Aussiedler are the German speaking people who lived out in 1945 and 1946 Czech Republic have been chased away; along the E6 you can see how the reconciliation between Germans and Czechs is achieving success.

Preparation

Walking a long-distance hiking trail is not something to embark on unprepared. If you are going to walk for days at a time to cover hundreds of kilometers, you must first build up a good physical condition, be able to read a map and use a compass, and be prepared for setbacks. It can also rain and be cold in Germany. Cafés, restaurants and hotels or guesthouses are not always open and not always cheap and they are not always on the route. If you don't bring camping equipment, it is a good idea to carefully figure out in advance at home where he or she will spend the night and to reserve a bed if necessary. However, sometimes it will be necessary to bus, train or take a taxi to a nearby larger town. Maps are indispensable in the preparation, especially detailed topographical maps on a scale of 1:50,000, such as the editions of "'Kompass"' and various local or regional editions. Although the route is drawn in the atlases of Germany 1:200,000 of "'Falk"' and "'ADAC"', the marking is often too incomplete to be able to find the way. This also applies to Allianz's "Freizeitkarte" series, despite the scale of 1:100,000. With the help of good detailed maps and some self-knowledge you can make a plan that consists of day stages from one sleeping accommodation to the next accommodation, rest days in places where you like to do something other than walking for a day, and of course a handy round trip.

Of course it is possible not to walk the entire route in one piece, but to go out for a week or so, or even just a day or so. Moreover, at least for large parts of the German E6 and depending on your range on a day, it is possible to complete the route with only a daypack. You then take up residence in a centrally located place and walk from there a number of day stages, after which you return to your sleeping address in the evening by public transport.

Safety

The E6 is a very safe walking route. The greatest danger lies in an almost invisible small animal: the tick. Ticks can (to varying degrees; in some regions almost 100% of ticks are infected) be carriers of two life-threatening parasites. Lyme disease, which is spread by tick bites, occurs throughout the E6 region. It is not possible to vaccinate against this disease, but one must check every evening for the presence of ticks. Once infected, a course of antibiotics is necessary. The other tick parasite occurs from the Harz to Austria and causes the disease FSME, a form of meningitis. This disease cannot be controlled with drugs; therefore one should be vaccinated with three injections before the trip.

In extreme weather conditions, such as sleet, severe storms and danger of flooding, the forests in general, and the mountainous parts of the route in particular, should be avoided. Longer routes without facilities exist in the Harz and the Bavarian Forest, for which you must have sufficient fitness. Other dangers along the route are minor: wild boars and other large game are generally shy, as are snakes. Rabies (rabies) occurs among forest animals, but is rare. There are no indications of high crime along the E6.

To the start

Flensburg is easy to reach by train, usually with a transfer in Hamburg. You can also fly from Amsterdam or Brussels to Hamburg, but this does not save much time, but it does cause a lot of environmental pollution. Travelers from Suriname, the Antilles and South Africa should take a flight to Berlin or Frankfurt am Main and then a direct train to Flensburg, or to Hamburg with a change to Flensburg. In Flensburg there are many hostels, guest houses, private rooms, apartments ("FeWos") and hotels. If you want to walk the first four to six stages with only a daypack, it is best to move in Schleswig.

To the former border post Kupfermühle, where the E6 enters Germany, you take a city bus from Flensburg from the train station or bus station of line 1 (runs every 20 to 30 minutes during the day). Get off at the final stop "Krusaa", just over the Danish border. After 100 meters you reach the Danish/German border (only indicated with an inconspicuous road sign) and thus the starting point of the German part of the E6. At the next bus stop, cross the road to a wide staircase with an escalator in the middle. At the top of these stairs is the Best Western Hotel des Nordens and the marking of the E6 in Germany begins, namely a slanted cross, x (in German this is called an Andreaskreuz). Note: Because Denmark and Germany both belong to the European Union and the Schengen area, there are no more checks at this border crossing. The customs and border police buildings have been demolished. What remains are wide grassy areas and unnecessary parking spaces.

If you want to walk the E6 in the other direction, you can train until Passau travel. Until Munich can you fly if you wish; from there direct trains run to Passau. Then you're up intercity buses designated. You will have to walk the last kilometers.

Route in Schleswig-Holstein

In Schleswig-Holstein the E6 largely coincides with the European walking route E1. For the first 400 km, the guidebook "Europäischer Fernwanderweg E1" by Arthur Krause (Kompass edition (2007), ISBN 978-3-85491-707-6 ) therefore a handy route description in German. It describes fairly accurately how to walk and gives an example of a division into daily stages. Because the booklet describes the E1, it is no longer important for the E6 after Güster, because there the two routes separate. It is essential to have good topographic maps on which the E1 and E6 are drawn, because the marking leaves something to be desired (especially if you follow the route from south to north). It should also be noted that the marking is alternately a white cross on a black background, then a black cross on a white background (or on a tree or pole), while the stickers used are often so faded that they are no longer fixed. whether they are white-on-black or black-on-white. Fortunately, pilgrim roads follow along parts of the route, so that you can often hold onto yellow shells on a blue background or two stylized feet on a white background with the bilingual text "Pilgerweg Pilgrimsruten". From the border post Kupfermühle to the village of Lottorf beyond Schleswig, this is the Via Jutlandica or Ochsenweg. For this route there is the guidebook "Der Jakobsweg von Flensburg nach Glückstadt/Elbe" by Karl-Josef Schäfer (published by Books on Demand GmbH (2008), ISBN 978-3-8334-9129-0 ), which can therefore be useful for the first sixty kilometers of the E6. From Flensburg to Lübeck, the Kompass map 724 (1:50,000) is also indispensable.

Those who want to walk with little luggage can decide to walk the route from four fixed points and use public transport in the morning or evening to return to the chosen accommodation. The city successively qualify as fixed points Schleswig, the capital Keel, the Hanseatic city Lubecka and the provincial town Lauenburg. You can find out how to get to the start and end points of the daily stages from these cities by bus or train each time, on this page. Dutch website.

From Schleswig

With Schleswig as your permanent residence (there are a youth hostel, guest houses and holiday apartments) you can walk the stages Flensburg - Oeversee, Oeversee - Schleswig, Schleswig - Brekendorf, Brekendorf - Eckernförde and the variant directly from Schleswig to Eckernförde. Moreover, from Schleswig you can reach the western variant of the European walking route E1 to start. It runs over the Danewerk and is therefore also an interesting excursion, but does not belong to the E6. From Flensburg to Ecker it is best to use Kompass card 724 and a good map of the city of Schleswig, which also shows part of the area.

At the border crossing Kupfermühle at the top of the escalator to the Hotel des Nordens (as indicated in the paragraph "To the start") the E6 turns right for a few meters to take the first road to the left and after 100 m, turn left again, a forest path to choose. With a wide bend through the Flensburger Staatsforst, the E6 returns to the old main road to Denmark, crosses it through a pedestrian tunnel, passes a public toilet and reaches Strandweg at Wassersleben. Then follows a walk on a tarmac cycle path along the Baltic Sea, until the routes suddenly turn right, through the forest to the old main road. You follow this on the bicycle and footpath to cross at the traffic lights to and in the Kupfermühlenweg. With a staircase you descend to the Turnerberg, which you follow to the left and further down to the street Neustadt. Now you keep going straight, under the Nordertor and through the pedestrian and shopping area to the heart of Flensburg. Incidentally, it pays off every now and then to take a small street to the left and take a look at the harbor or see the age-old houses of fishermen and sailors. After the center, the route officially makes a rather boring detour to Flensburg station (Bahnhof); feel free to roam the strikingly hilly city as you see fit. It is approximately 10 km from the Kupfermühle border crossing to the Flensburg station.

On the west side of the Flensburg station forecourt, an inconspicuous winding path leads up to Schleswiger Straße, which takes you over the railway via a large bridge. Then the E6 turns left into a road behind the railway which is successively called Valentiner Allee and Steinfelder Weg and alternates between industrial estates and allotments to finally arrive at a right angle on Eckernförder Straße. Cross it and then follow to the left for about a kilometer until just over a railway viaduct. Here you turn right and almost immediately left again to Jarplunder Straße. Here you leave the city behind for good and you walk between agricultural farmlands to the village of Jarplund. In this village you follow the busy road B76 to the left and a little later you turn into the Heinrichsweg. On country roads, whether paved or not, it now goes to the excavations at Munkwolstrup. After a dangerous crossing of the B76, the E6 descends through beech forests to the Sankelmarker Meer (the German word See means lake), which is followed counterclockwise until you turn left to the village of Oeversee (pronounced Euverzee) rising. From Flensburg station to Oeversee it is 11 km. In Oeversee you can eat and sleep in a unique 400-year-old inn, but the Romanesque church in the middle of the village is centuries older. It is possible to stay cheaper in the village of Frörup (pronounced Freurup) just south of Oeversee, but you have to leave the route for that. If you are not tired yet, you can continue along the E6 until Pension Petersen just before Idstedt.

You reach Idstedt by crossing the busy B76 in Oeversee and taking a small asphalt road. This takes you to a forest, where the route has two variants: through the forest and to the right along the forest. They come together again after 1 to 2 km at the height of a sheepfold. Here is a confusing collection of signs that send you in all directions, but the intention is to take a paved road to the south. This will take you to Süderschmiedeby. Going straight you turn slowly to the east, but before the end of the village you turn into a road to the southeast. With this you pass Sieverstedt and Stenderup and you arrive in Stenderupfeld. A wide forest path with some right angles leads you past Pension Petersen to a main road that you follow to the left into Stolkerfeld. You reach Idstedt on a smaller asphalt road.

Shortly before the end of the Dorfstraße, the route turns left and describes an arc around the Idstedter See, with a view of the end of the Langsee. Sharp right, a busy road is crossed and a forest area is reached. The route now continues through varied forests to Schleswig. The marking is still good here; the route passes the village of Lörschau, but does not enter it. The noise of a motorway is now always audible, but you do not cross the A7, but you do cross the also busy B201. Finally you come to Husumer Straße, which you follow to the left and after a kilometer leave to the right on Königswiller Straße. A little further on, you dive along a forest path into the Schleswig castle park, through which you arrive at Schloß Gottorp.

Schleswig is not only a suitable central point from which you can walk several stages of the E6; it is also an excellent stopping place to spend a few rest days culturally. Gottorp Castle contains several museums, including about the history of the region, some Viking ships, modern art and the baroque gardens in the castle park. All kinds of manifestations are also held; consult the website of the tourist information.

On the other side of the castle you come across the driveway at a busy intersection with traffic lights. Here you can turn left into the old town center, turn right on an unpaved footpath to the station (Bahnhof), while the route continues straight ahead. It is recommended to choose your accommodation in the station area, because public transport in Schleswig leaves much to be desired. However, all buses depart from the bus station in the old town and most call at the eccentrically located station.

About a hundred meters after the crossroads, the route veers slightly to the left into Herrenhals, but continues to follow Gottorper Straße at a distance. Under a viaduct of the B76 motorway, you have the choice: either immediately turn left on a cycle path along the motorway, or straight ahead meanders through a somewhat erratic residential area that turns into a row of ugly chain stores. Through a park you reach the Haddebyer Strandweg, which you follow to the left, under the B76 (here the two variants come together) and straight ahead along the bank of the Schlei (the fjord from which Schleswig probably takes its name). Finally, if you are forced to follow the cycle path of the B76, you will come to Odin's Biergarten, an old stopping place.

There is an essential choice here: A variant of the E6 goes straight ahead, with which you can reach Eckernförde in 1 day (25 km); to the right, crossing the B76, a variant twice as long begins (Krause only describes the last option). The short variant actually starts past Haithabu at the Noorbrücke, but as long as it's closed due to dilapidation, you'll have to walk straight ahead at Odin's Herberg or take a long detour around the whole of Noor. From the inn, the 9 km route is marked with an A in a circle.

The short variant passes a war cemetery on the B76 and then turns left into Fahrdorf. Here the route follows Dorfstraße for about a kilometer and then turns diagonally left into Strandholm. At the end of this residential street, straight ahead onto a footpath, which after a corner to the right leads to a quiet connecting road between the villages. Follow this road to the left until the exit Stexwig. Here again turn left into the village, with a few bends through almost the entire village, until you turn left into the Bäderstraße. After a few kilometers this road takes you to the village of Borgwedel. Here you first turn surprisingly left, then with a wide curve to a path on the banks of the Schlei, past a sailing school and a youth hostel and over the grounds of a yacht yard (always follow the path; watch out for crossing sailboats and tractors) . The path gradually bends away from the water and finally arrives at a paved road between the Luisenlund grounds. It is a former noble country estate that is now used as a boarding school and conference center. The marking ends with the A at an inconspicuous intersection. The last sign points straight ahead, stating that route A continues in that direction for another 0.0 km, but in reality the E6 turns left here, into an unpaved forest road. This bypasses the village of Fleckeby (café, restaurant, shops) and takes you on an asphalt road to the village of Götteby-Holm. From here you follow the cycle route to the left to Kohlendorf, where the two variants of the E6 come together.

The long variant cross the B76 with a pedestrian light at Odin's Inn, then head straight past Haddeby Church to the museum which depicts the ancient Viking city of Haithabu, and to the excavated and reconstructed Viking Age dwellings. Here the Ochsenweg and western variant of the [walking route E1] split off to the right to follow the Danewerk, while the converging E6 and the main route of the [walking route E1|E1] make a semi-circle over the rampart around Haithabu and finally a choose an asphalt road to the south. The marking and other signs lead you to the entrance of the dilapidated Noorbrucke.

As long as this bridge is closed, you have to divert to a road for car traffic that you have to follow to the left over the cycle path. First you pass a monument commemorating the final annexation of the Danish Duchy of Schleswig to the German Empire in 1864; then turn left into the road through Selk and Oberselk. Here you will find the marking again and turn diagonally right into the Muhlenweg to Lottorf. At the other end of this village begins a long march through the swamp that can be difficult or impassable after rain (then divert to the other side of the A7 motorway). Unfortunately, the din of the highway on the left and the piers of the railway's overhead wires on the right negates the sense of desolation.

Finally, via a tunnel under the A7 and a country road between farmlands, you reach the hilltop village of Brekendorf, 20 km away. If you've put in time to visit Haithabu along the way, this will be your finishing point for this leg; there is a hotel and a bus back to Schleswig. But if you arrive early in Brekendorf, you can continue for about 10 km to the Ascheberg, where Globetrotter will open a hotel and climbing school for outdoor athletes in 2013. Do not underestimate this trajectory; Although the distance is small as the crow flies, the route here winds in all directions, descending and ascending continuously over the Huttener Bergen. At 160 meters, the Ascheberg is one of the highest points in the state of Schleswig-Holstein.

After the Ascheberg, the long variant meanders along reasonably marked to Osterby and Kochendorf, where he unites with the aforementioned short variant.

Two variants immediately appear in Kochendorf, one of 6 km and one of 7&nabsp;km and both well marked. The first is across the south bank of the Windebyer Noor and a suburb straight to Eckernforde station. The latter counts as the main route and is also the most beautiful; via the north bank of the Windebyer Noor she reaches the picturesque harbor of Eckernforde. Officially she now walks through the pedestrian zone, also a shopping street to the station, but don't forget to take an alley now and then and enjoy the picturesque old fishermen's houses. At the station (train connections to Flensburg, Kiel and beyond) is also the bus station (connections to Schleswig, Brekendorf and other places in the area).

From Kiel

If you want to walk the following stages with a daypack, it's best to choose Keel as a permanent place of residence, but it is also quite possible to find a place to sleep at the end of each day's journey. This applies to the stages Eckernforde - Danisch Nienhof, Danisch Nienhof - Kiel, Kiel - Plon, Plon - Eutin and Eutin - Bungsberg - Kasseedorf. Kompass card 724 also proves useful here.

The E1 and E6 exit Eckernforde along the beach and continue to follow the coastline as far as possible as far as Kiel. Danisch Nienhof is reached via Noer, Krusendorf and Surendorf, where you could spend the night or take the bus back to Kiel.

After Danisch Nienhof you pass the lighthouse of Bulk and you reach Strande. Krause advises taking a city bus to Kiel here, but there is no reason to. The route leads first through a forest area and then along the coast and along a fascinating part of the harbor of Kiel to the landing stage of the ferry to Wellingdorf.

Kiel itself is not a pretty city; There was too much bombing in the Second World War for that. After these devastations, a new, modern city has emerged that, although it does not excel in original architecture, does have a lot to offer in the field of modern art and other cultural expressions. Sports enthusiasts will also get their money's worth.

The E6 leaves Kiel in the Wellingdorf district and then crosses the bank of the Schwentine to Raisdorf. More water follows after Preetz: the lakes Lanker See, Wielener See, Kleine Ploner See and Trammer See.

After Rathjensdorf and Plon, the Grote Ploner See, the Behler See and the Dieksee follow. In the middle of all that water lies the beautiful villa village of Malente, which is followed by the Keller See. Along it you reach the town of Eutin, with the Great Eutiner See.

Officially, the route here makes a big loop via Schleswig-Holstein's highest mountain, the Bungsberg, but you can also follow a 2 km marked connecting route that will quickly take you to Kasseedorf. The loop successively passes through the villages of Stendorf and Bergfeld, climbs up the Bungsberg and descends again (partly along the same path), crosses Schonwalde and Kasseedorf and unites at Kasseedorf with the short connecting route.

From Lubeck

• • • Neustadt in Holstein (meeting with European walking route E9)
    • Lubecka
    • Ratzeburg
    • Molln
    • Guster (split from walking route E1 and E9)
    • Buchen
    • Lauenburg

Lower Saxony Route

• • • Bleckede
    • schnega
    • Bodenteich
    • gifhorn
    • Braunschweig
    • Goslar (crossing with European walking route E11)
  • Harz

Route in Hesse

• • Rhön (meeting with European walking route E3)
  • Coburg

Itinerary in Bavaria

• • Coburg
  • Bohemian Forest
  • Bavarian Forest
  • Dreisesselberg

After the end point

The German part of the E6 ends at the border triangle of Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic. The most obvious continuation is easy to walk through, into Austria (see the article on the walking route E6). But if you think it's enough, it's best with a German regional bus to Passau go and take the train there.

If you end up in Flensburg, you can continue on the E6, into Denmark, or switch to the European walking route E1 which also enters Denmark. If you've had enough of walking, a city bus will take you to Flensburg station. Finally, there is the possibility to visit the city Schleswig take the western variant of the E1 and follow the E1 back to the south of Germany. You will come through Hanover and Frankfurt am Main Bee Constance on the border with Switzerland from.

all around

This is a usable article. It contains information on how to get there, as well as the main attractions, nightlife and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but dive in and expand it!