Thuringian Forest and the Rennsteig

Germany'S Best Known Long Distance Footpath, A Ridge Of About 170 Kilometres Walked In Six To Eight Days, And At Oberhof The Country'S Main Biathlon And Luge Training Centre, Which Puts The Forest On International Television Every Winter · Oberhof, Thuringia

The Rennsteig runs along the crest of the Thuringian Forest for about 170 kilometres, from the Werra at Hoerschel to the Saale at Blankenstein, and it is the best-known long-distance footpath in Germany. It is an old boundary and trade route rather than a scenic invention, which is why it holds the ridge and why the walking is steady forest rather than dramatic: spruce and beech, open heath in places, waymarked with a plain white R, walked in six to eight days by people who carry a pebble from the Werra and throw it in the Saale at the end. The high point is just under a thousand metres. Oberhof, halfway along, is the other half of the story - Germany's main biathlon and bobsleigh centre, with a cross-country ski tunnel that runs all year and a January World Cup that fills the forest with tens of thousands of people. Add the Drachenschlucht gorge near Eisenach, glass villages, and a part of Germany that is noticeably cheaper than the Alps for the same kind of day.

The Rennsteig ridge between Hoerschel on the Werra and Blankenstein on the Saale, with the main trailheads at Oberhof, Schmiedefeld and Neuhaus am Rennweg, Oberhof, Thuringia, Germany

The path and the forest are open always and free. Oberhof's arena and sports facilities keep event and training schedules rather than visiting hours, and the ski tunnel runs its own daily session times year round with closures for maintenance - confirm before planning a day around it. The January biathlon World Cup is ticketed, sells out, and shuts roads and car parks for the weekend. Mountain huts along the ridge keep short hours and a closing day each, and several shut entirely between seasons, which is the main planning problem for walkers. Winter brings groomed cross-country tracks; the Drachenschlucht gorge boardwalks can close for ice or storm damage. Trains reach Eisenach and Oberhof is served by bus from Zella-Mehlis and Oberhof-Zella station.

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