Rheinsteig Stage 19: Linz - Bad Honnef (South - North)

Bad Honnef

An ascent brings you to an avenue which leads to the Bruchhauser Heath campsite. From there, the trail continues to the Bruchhausen cemetery and the Marienberg, a former school. From here, the Rheinsteig trail cuts down to the Breitbach Valley, where the long ascent to the 'Auge Gottes' wayside shrine (lit. 'Eye of God') begins. On the way you will pass a cross which was erected in memory of all the miners who mined and smelted ores from these hills. The forest then becomes steeper and leads first to the hidden ruins of a former V1 rocket launcher and then to the 'Auge Gottes' wayside shrine. In the past, foresters often had to contend with timber thieves, so they erected a sign with the warning 'an eye is something that sees everything, even what happens in the dead of night'. Whether the thieves took any heed of this or not has not been recorded. From the nearby junction, you walk to the rest spot at the burnt down Barbara hut, where a detour to the Leyberg mountain (45 minutes) is worthwhile. There is a magnificent view of the summit of the Drachenfels, down into the Rhine Valley and of the peaks of the Eifel region. Back at the rest spot, take the trail through the woods and down into the Mucherwiesen Valley. Here you can follow the Rheinsteig trail to the right, where you join the Rheinhöhenweg trail and follow it to Bad Honnef.