Keschde Experience Trail

Hey you, welcome to the Keschde Experience Trail!

Along the following 12 stations on the circular route, you can learn and experience everything about the Keschde. The circular route is 6.1 km long and overcomes 108 meters in elevation. The walking time is 2 hours, and along the way, you will encounter exciting stations and picnic areas with great views. You just have to always follow the Keschde, it shows you the way.

The starting point is the Hiking Parking Lot Ahlmühle above Annweiler, where you will already find the first information board about the Keschde as well as a small play station. The play station consists of wooden logs that are partially stacked like in the game Mikado. If you follow the little Keschde straight ahead, you will reach the next station.

The next station is called "Forest Types" and there you can find small windows. Looking through these, you can see how the forest has changed over time.

Following the circular route and the little Keschde, you will reach the station "Forest Designers". Sweet chestnut trees are not only versatile in their uses but also contribute significantly to forest design and the climate.

The little Keschde leads you to the next station "Truly Eco", where you can learn what can be made from chestnut wood. The best examples of this you can find along the entire circular route, as both the picnic areas and play stations are made from chestnut wood.

The circular route takes you further to the second starting point of the Keschde Experience Trail, namely the Hiking Parking Lot Slevogthof. You reach the next station by passing the Slevogthof on the left. Caution, here the Keschde Experience Trail crosses the Palatine Keschde Trail! Just always pay attention to the correct small Keschde signs!

At the next station, you can learn more about the History of the Sweet Chestnut Trees in the Palatinate. The Romans introduced the sweet chestnut to the Palatinate and made it native here. On the meadow behind the seating group, you can find an old wine-growing method and enjoy a beautiful view over the Rhine Plain.

The little Keschde then leads you always along the forest edge to the station "Partners and Risks". At the small puzzle, you get to know other tree species and learn what the leaves, blossoms, fruits, and wood look like. At the 3-piece puzzle next to it, you learn what dangers there are for the chestnut stock in our forests. But you will also find out that chestnuts have many friends and partners in the forest.

The Keschde Experience Trail leads you to the next station "Origins of the Sweet Chestnut". Along the way to the station, you can see that new chestnut trees from various regions of southwestern Germany have been planted there. The foresters want to see if these trees can also thrive here.

The next station "Climate Change" is located directly in front of a meadow and the Kaltenbrunn spring. The information board tells you that chestnut trees like it warm and that they also cope well with the current climate change. Therefore, these trees are often planted among other trees in the forest to make them more stable.

Now you have to cross the meadow to continue following the Keschde down the paved road. Your next station is called "Integration Successful". There you will learn that chestnut trees provide protection and habitat for numerous species. The chestnut is fully integrated into the Palatinate.

At the end of this small road, turn left into the Ranschbacher Rosental - don’t be startled, you might encounter Highland cattle here, which graze here in free-range conditions. Following the Keschde and the Experience Trail further, you reach the station "Everything Revolves Around the Keschde". Here you will find hammocks made from chestnut wood for you. You can quietly watch the treetops and the sky and let your soul dangle! Everything but quiet happens at the festivals and markets in autumn around the chestnut. Here you can try delicious specialties made from chestnuts. There are also guided tours and hikes offered following the tracks of the Keschde. Caution, here the Keschde Experience Trail crosses the Palatine Keschde Trail as well! Just always watch out for the correct small Keschde signs!

You can also continue to follow the traces of the Keschde if you go straight ahead, always along the wide path. This way you come to the last station "All Around Delicious", in front of the original starting point Hiking Parking Lot Ahlmühle. This station is all about food because chestnuts are a healthy and regional food often found in Palatinate cuisine. For example, sweet chestnuts are used to refine bratwursts or tarte flambée.

We wish you lots of fun on the Keschde Experience Trail!

Sturdy footwear, weather-appropriate clothing, sun and rain protection, as well as sufficient supplies of food and especially drinks, as there are not always opportunities to eat or shop or they may be closed, should be in your backpack on every route. Although the path is continuously marked, for safety reasons you should always have a suitable map or a hiking app with you.

Hiking on natural paths and trails – Especially in autumn, note that fallen leaves can cover uneven terrain, roots, stones, or holes in the path. After thunderstorms or heavy rain, trees may still fall or branches fall off. Particularly in adverse weather conditions, natural paths can have muddy and slippery sections. Expect such path impairments when hiking. If you find certain path sections impassable, you should avoid them. Despite continuous marking, we recommend always carrying a suitable hiking map for safety reasons, so that, for example, in a thunderstorm or emergency, you can quickly find a safe area. Path closures and detours must be observed.

Danger situations – In case of an emergency, quick help is needed. And although cell phones can send GPS signals, the classic rescue points often provide the fastest help. These are located in places accessible to rescue vehicles. Remember the points with green signs and a white cross. In an emergency, return there and give the number on the sign to your emergency call. This way, rescue services know where to find you.

To the Ahlmühle parking lot:

Leave the B10 at the B48 Bad Bergzabern/Annweiler West exit. Turn left onto Altenstraße on B48. Turn immediately left onto Trifelsstraße and follow the road to the Ahlmühle parking lot.

To the Hiking Parking Lot Slevogthof:

Leave the B10 at the Leinsweiler/Siebeldingen/Birkweiler exit and follow the signs to Leinsweiler. In Leinsweiler, turn right onto Kirchstraße and zigzag up to the Slevogthof.

To the Ahlmühle parking lot:

From Annweiler with the Hiking Bus Line 527 (Note, mainly operates during the hiking season on weekends)
Get off directly at the starting point: Leinsweiler, Parking Lot Ahlmühle

To the Slevogthof:
From Landau with the Bus Line 530 to Leinsweiler.
Get off: Leinsweiler town. Continue on foot to the intersection Hauptstraße-Weinstraße. Follow Weinstraße to the right and then turn left onto Kirchstraße. In a zigzag, you go up to the Slevogthof.

Timetable information: via the websites of the railway (www.bahn.de) and the transport associations (www.vrn.de) or the apps "DB Navigator" or "myVRN"

Free parking is available at both starting points.

Please park only in the designated parking spaces and always keep access routes for emergency vehicles as well as work paths in the forest and vineyards clear. For overnight stays with camper or caravan, there are specifically designated motorhome parking spaces.

Tourism Office landauland
Hauptstraße 4
76829 Leinsweiler
06345 3531 urlaub@landauland.de
www.landauland.de

Association Südliche Weinstraße Annweiler am Trifels e.V.

Tourism Office
Meßplatz 1
76855 Annweiler
06346 2200 info@trifelsland.de
www.trifelsland.de 

In autumn, the chestnuts are ripe and you can collect them. How to prepare chestnut soup you will learn at the station "All Around Delicious".