WesterwaldSteig adventure loop "Marienthal Monastery and the End of the World

The circular tour starts at the hikers' car park in Marienthal. It goes up to the Sonnenberg with a resting place with a beautiful view. Immediately below, you can see the village of Ahlhausen, whose hilltop was once inhabited by Celts. Excavations here have proven the former existence of a refuge.

One of the highlights of this adventure loop is the charming and alpine nature trail Weltende, which crosses one of the most beautiful sections of Kroppach Switzerland through untouched coppice woodland along the Nisterbogen in romantic silence. The Weltende trail is a path carved into the rock, where children used to have to walk to school in Stein-Wingert. In the vernacular, it is also referred to as the "end of the world". At Nassen, there is another magnificent view over hilly Kroppach Switzerland.

In Marienthal, the pilgrimage church and the historically famous Franciscan monastery of Marienthal await. Legend has it that a shepherd often prayed in silent devotion before an image of Mary he had carved himself, and a first chapel was built for it around 1460. Several miraculous healings and resurrections from death were described, which led to a great pilgrimage and a church was built in 1494. A Franciscan monastery was founded in 1666. Retreats and educational events are still held here today. In addition, numerous pilgrims and processions also visit the place of grace.

In Marienthal there are several places to stop for a leisurely end to the hike.

From the car park in Marienthal, we start our round tour on the WesterwaldSteig hiking trail in the direction of Limbach. We follow the green W on a white background up to the Sonnenberg. At the Sonnenberg rest area, one of the most beautiful vantage points on the WesterwaldSteig, we can enjoy the view of the curved Nister valley and the wide hilly landscape towards Gebhardshain and Bad Marienberg.

We continue to follow the WesterwaldSteig and now reach the alpine Weltende trail. Surefootedness and a head for heights are prerequisites for hiking this charming nature trail. There are sections of steel ropes on the top of the mountain at smaller climbing passages. Here the hiker can hold on and safely negotiate the trail. When wet, the partly somewhat sloping path can be slippery. The Weltende trail ends shortly before Alhausen at signpost HAC033.

Here we leave the WesterwaldSteig and continue hiking on the Kölner Weg, which is marked with a white K on a black background. After a short climb, we cross the Raiffeisenstraße B256 and continue hiking across the field past Nassen.

Through the forest, the Kölner Weg leads us back to Marienthal. The last metres of our hiking trail lead us along the monastery walls back to our starting point, where the Westerwald gastronomy convinces us to stop for a bite to eat with a rich offer.