In the Leiblach valley: tracing old mills starting at the well of the Leiblach - Westallgäu water way 24

Logo In the Leiblach valley: tracing old mills starting at the well of the Leiblach - Westallgäu water way 24
Logo In the Leiblach valley: tracing old mills starting at the well of the Leiblach - Westallgäu water way 24
Tour data
14.9km
602 - 708m
Distance
127hm
120hm
Ascent
03:45h
 
Duration
Brief description

The varied tour on the mill way around Heimenkirch doesn't just lead to the Leiblach's well but is also a little trip to the village's history. As many as eight mills and saw mills and hammer mills stood along the Leiblach. They once were essential for the people, because that was where they could get the grain milled for their daily requirement. Because wheat and spelt and oat and barley and rye couoldn't be supplied by the farmers all year long, many millers earned a bit on the side by sawing and pounding bones at their mills. Today, the former mills have been mostly converted into residential buildings. However, information panels along the mill way make their history come alive again.

Starting point

Start of the tour: Parking for hikers at the underpass between the villages Riedhirsch and Heimenkirch

Route
Riedhirsch
1.1 km
Heimenkirch
5.2 km
Meckatzer Bräustüble
7.1 km
Meckatz
7.1 km
Kappen
7.8 km
Biesenberg
8.3 km
Zwiesele
9.8 km
Oberhäuser
12.7 km
Hl. Familie
12.7 km
Berg
13.5 km
Heimenkirch
14.0 km

Description
Hammer mill
At first, starting at the parking, the way leads you to the former hammer mill in the village Riedhirsch. The mill, including bone crusher, has its origins in the 17th century and is still preserved inside. Back in the days, it was driven  by the water of the Leiblach. The mill is privately owned and therefore can unfortunately not be visited.

Well of the Leiblach
Starting at the hammer mill, the tour continues through Riedhirsch and to the well of the Leiblach. The water flows crystal clear out of the framed well and into a small meadow ditch. A small resting place invites you to look and dwell. The tour goes along the Leiblach that quickly becomes wider and wider. The creek drains the hill country of the western Allgaeu and finally mounds into Lake Constance, drawing the border between Lindau-Zech and Hoerbranz in Austria.

Hammermoos
You take the same way from the well back to the hammer mill. Follow the road to Wolfertshofen, leading you through the mossland 'Hammermoos'. A small path leads you into the mossland worth seein, where once peat was cut. It becomes especially transparent when you look at the little peat-ditch that has been made accessible over a wooden walkway. After having visited the Hammermoos you go back to the little forest on the same way for a short part. Pssing the sports grounds, the 'Mühlenweg' takes you to the former mill 'Katzenmühle'.

Katzenmühle
The inscription on the info panel at the 'Katzenmühle' says that the mill was built in 1797. However, there are many indications that the mill is 160 years older - even if it was known under different names like Bäckelesmühle, Bärlesmühle or Muggenmühle. The milling process in the 'Katzenmühle' was stopped in 1945.

Ölmühle

Below the minitiature golf course the tour continues to the former oil mill. As the name suggests, it was no grain mill. Here, flax was pressed to oil, instead. The oil mill, that was used until 1907, has also been used as bone crusehr. In 1999, the oil mill was torn down. Today, a modern residential building is standing where the mill was once was.

 

Großenmühle

Following the Leiblach,  the tour leads you to a saw mill, the former 'Großenmühle', that has already operated in the 16th century. It is not clear, where it's name comes from: on the one hand, the mill belonged to a family called Groß  for a long time.  On the other hand, it was the biggest mill in Heimenkirch ('groß' means 'big'). The mill was operating until 1943 and the old saw mill was torn down in 1974. The new saw mill is still  operating.

Buhmühle

Passing the Kneipp basin and te public swimming pool, the tour leads you to the former Buhmühle in Meckatz, following the Leiblach. Youare passing a beautiful resting place where some granite blocks, that come from the Silvretta group,can be watched. The mill 'Buhmühle' itself could have operated since the 17th century. The last  grain was milled in 1914. The saw mill operated until 1951.

Mothenmühle

At the mill 'Buhmühle' you can choose between  two tours. The longer one leads you through Meckatz, Kappen and Biesenberg to the former Mothenmühle that also has operated since the 17th century. Until 1906 above all, corn was milled there. A bone crusher has also been in the Mothenmühle. In the saw mill, timber has been fabricated until 1973 – floorboards for cowsheds, amongst others. Diagonally opposite, after the bridge over the Leiblach, stands the saw mill Epple which has been driven  by the water of the Leiblach until 1970.Through Mapprechts, the mill way leads you to a beautiful oak that you approach on the second shorter tour directly from the mill 'Buhmühle. At that level, the tour continues to Oberhäuser with its beautiful 'Gedächtniskapelle' (memorial chapel), built in 1838 by the inhabitants, in order to get the Lord's protection from storm and thunder. The view across Heimenkirch and Meckatz and the mountain range  'Nagelfluhkette' and Lake Constance is exceptionally beautiful at the promising 'Bodenseekreuz'. The mill way leads you on through 'Berg', a part of Heimenkirch, back to Heimenkirch and to the parking.

Directions

Parking – hammer mill – Riedhirsch – well of the Leiblach – Riedhirsch – Hammermoos – hammer mill – Katzenmühle – Ölmühle – Großenmühle – Buhmühle – (longer variant starting here: Meckatz – Kappen – Biesenberg – Mothenmühle – Mapprechts) – Oberhäuser – Berg – Parking

Highest point
708 m
Endpoint

Ending point: parking for hikers at the underpass between the villages Riedhirsch and Heimenkirch.

Height profile
© outdooractive.com

Safety instructions

Varied hiking tour, partly on asphalted and partly on gravelled ways. No special difficulties.

Additional information

www.westallgaeu.de


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General info

Cultural/Historical
Fauna
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