Amrum Island Running Route

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Length 4.6 km (2.9 mi), terrain: flat but sometimes hard-going through the loose sand, gain of 10 meters

NOTE: If you're staying in nearby Norddorf, you can run along the quiet road through the marsh from the village, or along the dike, further east. This will add 2.3-kilometers in each direction to the run.

Amrum is my favorite German North Sea island: A varied landscape, small enough to easily explore on a bike but with a few scenic villages and sights. There are windmills, the lighthouse, thatched-roof houses everywhere, a long ridge of dunes running the length of the island, wide (often deserted) beaches that seem to go on forever, and strips of woods, heather and marsh. You won't find a big hotel anywhere.

Typical Amrum, in the village of Nebel

And one of the most natural spots on the island is the narrow northern point, the Odde or also called the Nordspitze. The whole peninsula is a nature preserve, with long, lonely coasts to either side. It's a wistful place of hikers, runners, birdwatchers and shell collectors. It's a place to re-learn how to wonder.

Runner along the Odde

Like the whole island, the west coast is lined by a wide beach, and the east coast is swampy, submerging into mud flats (the Watt) that stretch to the next island, Föhr. Guided groups of hikers gather at the start of this route to cross the flats at low tide, walking barefoot and in shorts through the occasional deep trench.

There's also a bird rescue station in the reserve, which can be visited by making a reservation in advance.

But right now, we want to just get out in the wild surroundings, breathe the salty air and bathe in the glory of Mother Nature.

We'll start at the beginning of the preserve, about 2.3-kilometers north of the village of Norddorf. There is a parking lot for bikes there, and a map of the island on a board, a meeting point for guided hikes (Treffpunkt). This is on the eastern side, facing the mud flats. 

The start: bike racks and map

The route itself is simple: just head north to the point, then head back again down the west coast and its wide beach.

A dirt road heads north for the first couple of minutes, but then ends at the water's side. The dunes of the preserve are fenced-in from now on. You just run in the sand, heading north, along the water. You can see Föhr just a few kilometers to the east. 

Along the east shore, with Föhr to the right

I like running as close to the water as possible: it's simpler to run on the wet sand than on the loose, dry sand close to the fence. Depending on the tide, you might be able to run quite a way out on the mud.

Group of hikers walking across the mudflats to Föhr

At about the 1-kilometer mark, you'll pass the bird rescue station, which you can't really see, hidden up in the dunes.

At 2 kilometers, you'll come to the northern point, where you cross the dune and then the wide beach to begin running south. Again, depending on the tide, you might be able to run further out during low tide.

Northern point of the island

This side has a whole different feel from the mudflats: here are waves breaking on the beach, with piles of shells that collect in low spots. This side is more exposed to the wind.

The wide west beach

After 4 kilometers, start watching for the sandy path that cuts through the dunes to get you back to the starting place. There is a green-and-white nature-preserve sign there, and lots of footprints leading you into the dune.

Path cutting across the dunes

NOTE: You could also continue southwards along the beach if you want to get back to Norddorf: you can see the buildings of beachside restaurant at Norddorf Beach straight ahead.

The beach gets more active around here. The Norddorf surf schools drag their equipment out the the water here for classes, which are fun to watch.

Windsurf class for kids on the west beach

Schlei Fjord Running Route

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Length 7.2 km (4.5 mi), terrain: a few short ups and downs on a flat trail, gain of 0 meters

It's not well-known internationally, but several fjords cut their way into the northernmost German Baltic coast. And one of the nicest fjords is the Schlei, a 42-kilometer-long inlet stretching southwest from its mouth on the Baltic at Maasholm.

Unlike the steep, mountainous fjords in Norway, those in Denmark and Germany are nestled in sandy hills, dug out by ice-age glacier tongues, or by their melted runoff. The Schlei can seem as wide as an ocean and as narrow as a small river, lined by pastures and woods, dotted by sand cliffs and manor farms.

Along the Schlei

This route follows part of the Schlei's southern shore, along the Schlei Wanderweg, a hiking trail that lines several sections of the inlet.

This running route connects two fjord-side manor farms, Büstorf and Stubbe, near the scenic towns of Rieseby and Sieseby. It follows a very quiet section of the Schlei hiking trail, with several secluded beaches and a lot of nice lookouts over the fjord, then returning on the same trail. It's an inspiring place to be out and about!

We'll start the run at the Büstorf end, as there is a public parking lot there. At the Stubbe Manor end, you have to park further from the trail.

The carpark in Büstorf

So, if you're ready to get going, the turnoff to Büstorf is along the road from Kosel to Rieseby, just a half-kilometer southwest of Rieseby. There is a parking lot for hikers.

Now just continue north on the road the short way to the shore, and from then on northeastwards past the little marina (Wassersportverein Rieseby).

From now on, there are no more buildings or roads until we reach the Stubbe manor. The first part of the trail, directly at the water's edge, is a bit rough, with swampy spots and some deep sand.

Waterside running

It then gets a bit higher and dryer, heading into beech woods and meadows. Out over the water, sailboats cross the glittering reflections.

A little swimming spot

You'll pass a few first secluded swimming spots, and a place where people balance stones into little pyramids.

The stone pyramids

After 1.5 kilometers, for the next 500 meters, the waterside trail starts taking some steep ups and downs, and there is a spot with a huge fallen beech tree blocking the path. To avoid those, you can follow the nicer path as it goes through the woods, parallel to shore, but inland a bit. Or you can take the challenging shore path, which is what is followed in this route map. I like this route best, with more water views, creek crossings and secluded inlets.

Crossing a stream without a bridge

You'll then head back into woods for the rest of the way into Stubbe. The Stubbe farm is beautiful, and you might want to take a turn to the left to see it. There's a cafe there, too.

The gate-house to the Stubbe mansion

This is the turn-around spot. Now follow the same waterside trail back to the parking lot in Büstorf.

Vikings on the Schlei

There are a lot of Viking remains in the area, especially at the west end of the Schlei, near the main town of Schleswig. There is the archeological site of Haithabu (Hedeby) on a little side-arm of the Schlei. Haithabu was an important Viking trading town, where goods were unloaded from Baltic ships and carried westwards over land to the Eider River, where it was again put on boats and shipped out to the North Sea. Some of the Haithabu buildings have been rebuilt on their original locations, and local people reinact some of the village inhabitants, exhibiting their crafts. There's also an interactive museum. Check for more details here.

And starting in Haithabu, a long earthen wall, the Dannewerk (spelled Danevirke in Danish), begins, guarding the land to the Eider, much like Hadrian's Wall did in Britain. It was built to protect Denmark's southern border from Saxons and Slavs encroaching from the south and east.

You can also find several big stones carved with Viking runes in the area, and a few were moved to the Haithabu museum. Enjoy your stay!

Dinkelsbühl Old-Town Running Route

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Length 5 km (3.1 miles), terrain: easy, flat, gain 41 meters

Dinkelsbühl is one of those fairytale towns along Germany's Romantic Road: church towers rise above city walls lined by stone watchtowers. Heading through the city gates, the old-town lanes lead you from one little market square to the next, passing thousand-year-old monasteries and fountains surrounded by of half-timbered houses. If you visit south Germany, there's a good chance you'll end up in Dinkelsbühl.

Old-town street in Dinkelsbühl

Dinkelsbühl blends a mixture of South German culture, with good food and beer, perched on the border between Swabia, Bavaria and Franken. The Romantic Road (a section of route 25) links a string of scenic towns from Würzburg to Augsburg like pearls on a chain.

And there is no better way to discover a beautiful town like this than to put on your running shoes and start following the alleys past the gate-towers and little shops.

House entrance in the old-town

In Dinkelsbühl, you can run a loop around the old town, outside the walls, and also run a few zig-zags within the walls.

NOTE: There are also runs taking you outside town in each direction, see https://www.outdooractive.com/de/touren/#cat=Wanderung&filter=b-loopTour-1&view=listMap&wt=Dinkelsb%C3%BChl,%20Deutschland%20(undefined)&zc=14,10.3199,49.07836 
This run will just cover the essentials, circling the walled city once, then heading inside to wind through the narrow streets past the main sights in the old town.

Dinkelsbühl is shaped like an elongated triangle, with the angles pointing north, south and west. We'll start this inspiring run at the north end of town, outside one of the main gate towers, Rothenburger Tor (where the road to beautiful Rothenburg heads off to the north). There is a small lake there, Rothenburger Weiher, part of the water barriers that once protected the walled town.

Rothenburger Tor

To start the run, walk out through the gate, with the massive fortifications behind you, and run with the lake to your left side, heading north.

The Faulturm tower

At the north end of the lake, turn left to continue following the lakeside, and then left again to head back towards the fortifications, at the Faulturm tower. There is a public park here, with a big gazebo. There are a couple of parallel pedestrian trails following the outside of the walls, going southwards. Stay on the one closest to the wall, in the old moat. An earthen berm to the right side protects the city walls. You'll pass smaller towers every hundred meters or so, a really medieval setting.

Moat trail: wall to the left, protective earthen berm to the right

You'll head under a bridge that brings traffic through the western gate, the Segringer Tor. Keep running southwards.

After the one-kilometer-mark, you'll go under a narrow pedestrian bridge, where the trail circles back to take you up to the embankment to the right. Once up there, continue running southwards outside the walls. There are now various gardens between you and the walls.

The trail at the Segringer gate

When you come to the busy Südring traffic-circle at the south end of the old-town, keep running along the outside of the walls, past the Third-Dimension Museum (with its interesting optical illusions) located inside a fortified water mill with pointed corner towers. This is the two-kilometer-mark.

The 3D museum

Continue on the trail as it now turns northward, with a narrow side-arm of the Wörnitz River to your left, along the eastern walls. The open parkland keeps things nice and quiet.

There is a group of old houses outside the western gate, Wörnitztor. Keep running north through the archway through the yellow house, and into more parkland as we approach the spot where we started the run.

Wörnitztor gate-tower

When you come to the Schleuse Biergarten, where we started the run, turn left to run westwards directly between the wall and the Rothenburger Weiher pond, at the three-kilometer-mark.

The walls along the lake

Just before the round Faulturm at the northwest corner of town, turn left into the open pedestrian gateway through the wall, going into the old-town for the first time. Head between the old-fashioned gardens to the street ahead, Bauhofstraße. Right there on the corner is a huge half-timbered building that was once the armory, now used as a clubhouse for the kids' costume fest, Kinderzech.

Old timbering at the Kinderzech

Now just run south on this scenic street, past places like Weib's Brauhaus, the Schweinemarkt and the Rathaus (town hall). After you cross Segringer Straße, the street name changes to Föhrenberggasse as it curves to the southeast.

You'll pass a big baroque palace on the right side, the former local headquarters of the Teutonic Order, now used by the German tax authorities.

Teutonic Order palace

When you get to Schäfersgäßlein, turn left and run the one block to Nördlinger Straße. We're almost at the south end of the old-town now, so turn left and head back north through the eastern neighborhoods.

In a few blocks you'll come to the main church, the Gothic St. Georg, at the wine market. There are some other amazing old houses lining the market square here, take a look!

The Weinmarkt

Now run the few blocks north along Dr.-Martin-Luther-Straße towards our starting point at Rothenburger Tor.

Just before you get there, maybe turn right into the courtyard of that big yellow complex of buildings on the right side: the old hospital, the Spital. There are water wells, a water mill, a tread-mill, a theater and other interesting stuff to take a look at on a quick loop through the courtyard.

In the Spital courtyard

Now, aren't you glad you decided to get out and run today?

Erfurt Old-Town Running Route

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Length 5.6 km (3.5 miles), terrain: easy, flat, gain 40 meters

Erfurt is packed with medieval beauty. The capital city of Germany's state of Thüringen isn't known by many people out there in the world, but Erfurt is a special place. And it's a great town for a memorable run.

This run will take you past many of the old-town's best sights: the unique house-lined bridge called the Krämerbrücke, the breath-taking cathedral hill, the Zitadelle fortress, the downtown, and the relaxed, green trails along the Gera River.

The Erfurt town hall

So, if you find yourself in this great little city and want to discover its treasures by foot, come along on this run through lots of great scenery!

To get running, let's first head to my favorite spot in town, the little park along the river at the north side of the Krämerbrücke. There, where the Augustiner beer-garden terrace meets the rippling water of the Gera there's a great view of the bridge. You can take in the beauty of the wall of half-timbered houses on top of the stone bridge, and see the old ford right next to it.

The Krämerbrücke

So let's get running: follow the path up onto the bridge and turn right to run over the Krämerbrücke, heading west. The walls of houses to each side make it hard to imagine that you're crossing a bridge. The old houses are home to a lot of nice tourist boutiques nowadays.

Crossing the bridge

When you exit the bridge, at Benediktplatz, the old synagogue is hidden in a courtyard across the square. Another great view of the bridge can be had if you turn to the right and look out from there.

Head straight out along Fischmarkt for the two blocks until you come to the real Fischmarkt square itself. This is one of the nicest spots in town, with the gothic town hall and some amazing renaissance houses gracing the Platz. We'll come back here again later for a closer look.

Zum Breiten Herd at the Fischmarkt

Now, keep going straight along the old shopping street, Marktstraße. You will run straight into the gigantic, open square in front of the cathedral hill, Domplatz. Sometimes there is a vegetable market there, but it never begins to fill this huge space.

The cathedral hill is pretty impressive, with its twin churches throning on the little hill across the square. The Gothic cathedral is to the left, and the three-steepled St. Severin's church on the right. Both are absolutely beautiful inside, and you should make sure that you come back later to explore.

Cathedral on left and St. Severin

But now, let's run up the steps that lead to the churches and run to the back side to take-in the view to the west.

At St. Severin

Now, run back down the steps and turn left to run to the north end of the Domplatz. There, on the next hill, Petersberg, thrones another highlight: the hilltop fortress called the Zitadelle.

Looking up towards the citadel

The stout stone walls beckon for a loop through the fort! So cross the street and head up the stone walkway heading up through the lawns along the hillside. There is a little vineyard to your left.

When you approach the walls, take the metal steps up to the higher road that heads into the main fort gate, Peterstor. The ornate gateway takes you through an archway below the fort commander's building.

Follow the cobblestoned lane as it continues upwards to the big open square. There is an old field-cannon there. Turn right and run through the square towards the big buildings to the right, along the north side.

The way up

There is a huge, abandoned barracks building and a romance-style stone building with an ill-fitting roof. The stone building is a thousand-year-old church, St. Peter's, which has a big history. It was part of an ancient Benedictine monastery which once stood here, next to the kaiser's castle. It was in this church that rebel duke Henry the Lion begged for forgiveness from Kaiser Barbarossa. When Napoleon conquered the area, the church was turned into a field hospital. It later burned out when the fort was attacked by the Prussians. The repaired building was later used as a warehouse, covered with the current roof.

Run between the two buildings towards the back. There, take the steps downward along the bastion walls. Now turn left and run back along the backside of the abandoned barracks building, turning left to come back to the fort's main square again.

Now let's run back out the same way that we came, heading downhill past the vineyard again, to the Domplatz.

Run south across the square, past the obelisk and then exit to the southeast on Kettenstraße.

Continue along Paulstraße, which ends at a long church, the Predigerkirche. Continue along the left side of the church along Predigerstraße for a block, until you come to the little lane called Schuhgasse, where you turn left and find yourself back at the Fischmarkt, with its Römer fountain.

The Römer fountain at the Fischmarkt

Now let's run through the lively shopping area of the old town, exiting the square towards the southeast along Schlösserstraße.

You'll soon cross the Gera River again, where there is an old water mill.

At the water mill

Continue straight along Schlösserstraße, where a tram line follows the street, taking us to the Anger, the main shopping district downtown.

Turn left at the Anger square and follow it to the Martin Luther statue and the church behind him where he once preached.

Demonstrators at the Anger

Just past the church, turn left on Meienbergstraße and follow it back to the Krämerbrücke, this time at the other end at Wenigemarkt.

The Aegidien Church covers the entrance to the bridge, so you run through the archway under the church to access the bridge again, then turning right to exit back to our starting point next to the river.

St. Ägidien at the Krämerbrücke entrance

You could stop here and enjoy the view if you feel like it, but why not keep running for another kilometer and explore a bit more of the leafy riverside?

So that's what the route does now: head north past the Augustiner and exit the park onto Schildgasse and then head further north on Comthurstraße.

At the Nikolai Hotel the street ends, but continue northwest on the riverside trail. After a few blocks, the trail loops through the little park called Venedig (Venice). This is our turnaround spot.

In Venedig-Park

To see something a bit different on the way back, take the footbridge to the southern part of the park, on an island in the river. When the trail ends, just continue the way we came in, just to the left of the island trail.

In a few minutes, you'll be back at the beautiful Krämerbrücke again. Time to stop and enjoy this amazing scene!

Rothenburg ob der Tauber Scenic Running Route

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Length 5.7 km (3.5 miles), terrain: a few hills, gain 147 meters

Rothenburg is, for good reason, one of the most visited towns in Germany. It combines so much medieval charm into one small area, that it's hard to find a town that can top its enchantment. It has about everything you'd like to see in a medieval setting: intact town walls and gate towers, lots of old half-timbered and Renaissance-era buildings, a location perched on the bluffs above a winding, green river valley, and lots more.

Rothenburg old-town

If you're touring Germany and find yourself in Rothenburg, here's a little run that puts all of that together: It follows some of the most interesting old-town lanes, heads up the steps to the tops of the town walls and lets you run up there for a few stretches, heads down into the Tauber River valley, crossing a couple of beautiful old bridges and passing a few watermills. It then heads back up to town again, entering a gate-tower to then view the old spittal grounds and the bastion, and to then run along the top of the town walls again before returning to the main market square.

So, if you're lucky enough to be standing on the market square with your running shoes on, take a look around before we head off. That big, stone, Renaissance-style building with the arcaded front is the town hall (Rathaus). 

At the market square

This square was the legendary scene of a celebrated event back almost 400 years ago, the Meistertrunk. 

The Rathaus front entrance, with snow flurries!

The Imperial army, headed by General Tilly, had just captured the city. In the town hall, the bürgermeister was pleading for Tilly to spare the city the horrors of massacre and plunder, saying that the local wine was too good for the town to be destroyed, and he offered Tilly a large tankard. Tilly told the bürgermeister that if he could drink the entire contents of over 3 liters in one go, the town would be spared. And, somehow, the bürgermeister managed this Meistertrunk!

We'll have to do without a tankard of wine, but it should be a great run anyway....

Heugasse from the rooftops

Let's turn northwards and exit the square along Heugasse (Hay Lane) and its scenic houses. It's hard to imagine that almost half the town was bombed out in the last weeks of World War II. Almost everything was rebuilt in the original style.

After a few blocks, you'll come to the Schrammeplatz, a square used as a parking lot, with the massive town walls blocking the way in front of you. There's a little gate through the wall here, and you have the choice of following the course of the wall by either going outside, or taking those steps to the top of the wall and running along the ramparts, or running along the lanes that line the insides of the walls. 

Along the ramparts

I think the ramparts are the absolutely coolest way to go, with a view out to both sides, and views downwards into the courtyards of the old-town houses. So that's the way I did it, but just choose the way you prefer.

So climb to the top, if you'd like, and turn left to run westwards along the ramparts. Needless to say, you need to watch your step, and take care not to upset the other people who are just walking along the wall. This section of wall ends in just 200 meters, and you have to take the steps downward at the Klingentor tower.

View over town from the ramparts

Continue westwards along Klosterweth lane next to the section of unrestored walls. In just a block, the walls turn to the left as we reach the west edge of the old town. You'll see the hillside going down through the trees to the Tauber River valley to the west. That tall tower in the corner was used to jail people who did non-serious crimes!

View along the Tauber Valley walls

Run southwards for a block, continuing on Klosterweth. We're above the playground outside the walls. Now you have to leave the wall because the monastery grounds ahead block the path. So turn left and keep running on Klosterweth for a block until you hit Klingengasse. Turn right there at the Schwarzer Adler Hotel and follow the street as it passes under the apse of St. Jakob's church.

Once past the church, turn right to run west on Klostergasse, which will curve past the Burghotel towards the left and come out in a little square at the clock-tower called the Burgturm. We'll now exit the town through the tower gate, heading out through the walled compound that once housed the castle. Now it is just a garden.

The castle gate at night

Keep to the left and follow the Weinsteige footpath as it leads downward into the valley. For this section outside the city, we're following the marked trail number three. Just follow the red trail markers with "3"!

The trail markers

The path circles below the garden above, then take the left-turn to cross the covered footbridge over the Tauber River. This beautiful green valley has a variety of hiking trails if you want to extend the run. We'll just follow a short section of the river.

NOTE: If you want to follow some of the other marked hiking trails, here is an English-language page listing them: https://www.rothenburg.de/welcome/sport-active/hiking/hiking-trails/

After crossing the bridge, follow the trail to the left, next to the quiet Taubertalweg road. You'll run through the Fuchsmühle watermill complex, then continue as the road heads uphill and curves around a bend in the river southwards past more mills and farmhouses.

The road continues curving and joins into Leuzenbronner Straße and continues northeast before curving to the right and crossing the very cool old stone bridge over the river. This is a double-decker bridge, with two sets of arches.

Let's get a closer look by circling under the bridge to the right and following the path along the riverside, still following the number 3 trail.

The Panoramaweg trail (an old shoe as a trail symbol) now takes us past vineyards and zig-zags its way up the hill, back into town through the gate at Kobolzeller Tor.

The Panoramaweg below town

Running uphill, in just a block you'll come to maybe the most photogenic spot in town, the Plönlein fountain, with cobblestoned streets branching off towards two gate-towers.

Along Spitalgasse

Now turn right and run towards the Siebersturm, past beautiful old houses.

The Siebersturm

Continue on Spitalgasse towards the southern point of the old town.

At the Spitalkirche (hospice church) you might want to circle it around the back side to see the beautiful courtyard of the old hospice, with its round-towered Hegereiter-Haus, the amphitheater and some other impressive buildings.

Carnival-goers at the amphitheater

Right after this, you exit town by continuing south through the tower and Spital-bastion. It's a pretty amazing spot, covering several levels, with its own covered bridge and ramparts.

At the bastion

After looking at the bastion from the outside, head back through the gate into town again, taking the first right-hand onto Sterngasse, following more of the city walls as we head northwards.

Let's run along the top of the walls again, so find the first steps upwards. The walls take us northwards for a while, then turn right to follow a lane called Röderschütt. We'll run through a few more towers and then pass the strangely beautiful medieval smithy called Gerlachschmiede, with its pointed front and curving roof. I like it!

The Gerlachschmiede from the ramparts

At the next tower, Rödertor, with its own bastion outside, take the stairs down and turn left to cross the old town along Rödergasse.

In a few blocks, you'll come to another especially scenic spot, where a flower-draped fountain provides a great foreground for the Markusturm straight ahead. The Markusturm is a clock-tower gate leading us into the oldest part of town, with the old market square straight ahead.

The Markusturm

Back at the market, you'll have to wander the other old-town streets once you're cleaned up, and start enjoying a bit of town from the inside: try out one of the inviting cafés or restaurants, try some of the local "snowbal"l specialties, and take a look at the amazing Christmas decoration stores. Have fun!