Via Naturae
and Forest Adventure Trail
On the Königstuhl hill, the City of Heidelberg has prepared two very special forest paths, to help people experience the forest in new ways: the Via Naturae and the Forest Adventure Trail (Walderlebnispfad).
The two paths are part of the City of Heidelberg’s ‘Königstuhl protected forest’ project, and were designed with enthusiastic and expert input from the Heidelberg Forestry Office and the Neckartal-Odenwald Nature Park. The Forest Adventure Trail was ‘conjured up’ by the company Werkstatt gGmbH with great artistry and technical skill.
The ‘Via Naturae’
All along the Via Naturae path are picture signposts designed to make walkers aware of the important role that forests play in their lives. This clearly-marked trail is suitable for anyone with an interest in the natural world, but particularly teachers and pupils who would like to take their biology lessons out of the classroom and get hands-on with nature. There are plenty of stimuli there to get the imagination going.
The full Via Naturae circuit is around 8 kilometers long, but walkers can also choose a shorter 3.5-kilometer version. The path leads deep into the ‘protected forest’ on the Königstuhl hill, first heading gently downhill for two kilometers to the Hohlen Kästenbaum hut, then turning southwards and for the next two kilometers following the paths Oberer Drachenhöhlenweg and Kaiser-Franz-Weg as far as Linsenteicheck – the lowest point on the route, at an altitude of 310 meters. It is advisable to take a break in the hut, because the next four kilometers of the Via Naturae are a steady upward incline. The path follows Alter Hilsbacher Weg, passes the huts Kraussteinhütte and Kaltteichhütte, and finally loops back to the start, at 560 meters above sea level.
Forest Adventure Trail
The educational Forest Adventure Trail is particularly suitable for children. It leads right into the depths of the forest and whisks children – big and small! – away on all kinds of adventures, stimulating their imagination and encouraging them to explore the world of the forest with their hands, eyes, ears and noses. There are plenty of surprises to be had on this roughly two-kilometer route (which, incidentally, is also suitable for children’s buggies!). Little pointers along the way encourage children to open their senses to the forest’s many facets: its magical atmosphere, the many eyes and faces of the forest, the sounds, the scuttling, the creeping, the crawling, the flying...
The Forest Adventure Trail starts and ends at the hikers’ car park on the Königstuhl hill, leaving from the edge of the forest right by the telecommunications tower, and finishing back in the car park below the ‘Märchenparadies’ fairytale park. The circuit follows the paths Hohlen-Kästenbaumweg, Nasenplatzweg and Eisweiherweg.
Getting to the Via Naturae and the Forest Adventure Trail
The best way to reach both of these trails is with the funicular railway. The funicular runs daily every 20 minutes from 9 am onwards from the station Kornmarkt/Rathaus, taking just 17 minutes to reach the end stop, ‘Königstuhl’.
You can also reach the Königstuhl by car via Klingenteichstraße. There is plenty of free parking on the Königstuhl.
Weitere Infos
Via Naturae and Forest Adventure Trail flyer (9.883 MB)
Neckartal-Odenwal Nature Park
UNESCO Geo Nature Park Bergstraße-Odenwald
