ZollvereinSteig

Starting at the free parking lot of the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex, today was my fourth and final Essen circular walk. This time with significantly less elevation gain and a focus on industrial heritage instead of natural trails. The Zollverein Trail opened only a few years ago and offers a fantastic view of the industrial heritage that has long shaped this region. After passing the impressive buildings, towers, conveyor belts, coking plants, pipes, etc. of the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex, where even goats and sheep grazed, the trail left the area and continued toward Altenessen. Occasionally, I passed allotment gardens typical of the region, and further north, I headed toward two slag heaps. The trail meandered laboriously up the Schurenbachhalde, from which I had a fantastic view of my starting point and the surrounding area in general. I continued a little further to the Eickwinkel Heath, where I took a break about halfway through the walk. Up to this point, the trails were mostly paved or gravel, easy but very pleasant to hike, and mostly in green surroundings. The weather was very pleasant, and the colorful leaves on the trees clearly signaled the arrival of autumn. The next stop was the small Zollverein Heath before heading towards the destination. The trails became increasingly dense with paths. The trails are sometimes almost impossible to find without Komoot; the signposts are good and frequent in the easier sections, but poor or nonexistent at the critical points. In such an urban area, immaculate markings should actually be possible. Overall, a beautiful, easy trail that is highly recommended if you enjoy industrial heritage and the charm of the Ruhr Valley. For me, this is the fourth and last major circular trail in Essen, alongside the Baldeneysteig, the Kettwiger Panoramasteig, and the Deilbachsteig.

Following last year's success, Essen hosted another Steige Day today. This time, five hikes were offered around the Zollvereinsteig trail. So, this morning, just before 9 a.m., I met @Verena—whom I had the pleasure of meeting last year on the Baldeneysteig—at Zollverein. After the mayor's opening, the first participants were allowed to start. We headed past the coking plant, where we received our first stamp, to Zeche Carl, which we reached after the first hour. Here, we received our second stamp. A short time later, we collected our third stamp in Altenessen's Bürgerpark. Time for a quick drink before the climb to Schurenbachhalde began. My friend @Yvonnsche joined us at Bramme. (She didn't want to leave quite so early.) After a group photo and a magnificent view of Essen (city center and Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex), Gelsenkirchen (Nordsternpark, Arena), Herten (Hoheward), Bottrop (Tetraeder, Ski Hall), and Oberhausen (Gasometer), the three of us continued on. The weather couldn't have been better. Our jackets were quickly stowed in our backpacks. With every ray of sunshine, it grew warmer and warmer. On the way down the slag heap, a small pond with benches invited us to take a break. After 2.5 hours, our backpacks became a little lighter. After the well-deserved break, we continued downhill. At the bottom, we received our fourth stamp. We then continued through small, successively arranged green spaces, making the trail a very beautiful hike, to the next slag heap. Here, we received our stamp before the ascent to the Eickwinkel slag heap (Zollverein/Triple Z), on the footbridge with a view of the mosque. Today's trail had a great deal to offer in terms of culture. At the top of the slag heap, there was a beautiful view of Nordsternpark with its Hercules statue. It seemed close enough to touch. Through cemeteries and the Nienhausen district park – where we took another short break after 17 km – the trail continued through increasingly greener terrain until we reached the playground at Ophoff. Here we received our sixth stamp. After a short stretch of forest on the mountain bike trail (the descents from the mountain bike trails and slag heaps give this "trail" its name), we reached the cemetery at Hallo, which offers at least two attractions: the "Essener Aussicht" (Essen View) with a view of Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex, and the Islamic burial ground right next door. Shaft XII of the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex was now not far away. There was also a stamp station here, which we didn't need for our red professional route, but we had it registered anyway. From the beginning, we had all the stamps for the five different routes registered. From Shaft XII, it was now only a stone's throw of 2.5 km to the destination, which we reached after six hours. 4 of the 5 routes were now completely stamped. So the gold hiking pin was honestly earned. Since I had completed 4 routes, I also asked for the silver pin, which was available for the 4 shorter routes. With a slight roll of my eyes, it was handed to me. Since Yvonne joined us later, she at least needed a stamp at the coking plant. Verena and I walked with her once more to the coking plant over the old railway lines. After Yvonne received her stamp and pin here, we discovered the signs for the yellow family route, which we took for the return journey. Now I have officially earned the silver pin, as I have now completed both the longest (26.4 km) and shortest (4.15 km) routes. The return journey was a few meters higher up via the crew corridor, which I found particularly nice. Back on the ground, there was an ice cream van next to the stairs, and so @Yvonnsche invited us in for an ice cream sundae. We enjoyed our ice cream in the last, now sparse rays of sunshine. We needed our jackets again after all. On the catwalk (team walkway), we spotted some people on the roof terrace, so we decided to add a few more meters of elevation. We easily mastered the first few meters of elevation via the escalator to the Ruhr Museum. Guided tours at Zollverein were free today. However, we had to pay for the museum and the ascent to the roof terrace. €3 for the additional stairs, as the elevator was closed. The view over the grounds and the neighboring towns was worth it, though. Here we also had a view of the Schurenbachhalde and the Rungenberg slag heap. Satisfied, we got back into our cars after 31 km. On the way back, I cheated a bit and drove to the Stauder Brewery, where I got the last stamp. At 6 p.m. sharp, we reached the private brewery, which was packing up but was happy to get the stamp out again. Now I had all the stamps for the five routes. A successful day in very pleasant company, which we made the most of. The appointment for next year has already been decided.

"And preserve the colours of His sky, white and blue!" - this colour theory of the Bavarians is surpassed by the Ruhr area: Bright blue sky over rich green foliage and, in between, rust-red industrial monuments. Essen was once the city with the most hard coal mines in the world. Today, none are active anymore. The last one, located at the starting point of today's trail, named Zollverein, ceased operations over 30 years ago and is now a museum. Nature has reclaimed its place: We hike an almost 30-kilometer loop mostly through lonely, almost 40-year-old birch forests, on dirt paths, hiking trails, and former railway lines repurposed as cycle paths, climbing overgrown spoil heaps with fantastic views. There are no beer gardens like in Munich, but if you pay attention to ordering the right brand (Stauder in Essen, Veltins in Gelsenkirchen), you can buy beer and enjoy it at beautiful rest stops along the way. This is what a city hike is like!

Back from Sweden nine days ago and only done two small hikes of around 19 km each. That had to change. That's why we went to Essen today to complete the Zollvereinsteig for the second time.

The ZollvereinSteig leads from the impressive 100 hectare area of the UNESCO World Heritage Zollverein Coal Mine Site right through the north of Essen. We hiked the route at the beginning of March 2024, passed the coking plant and the Carl Coal Mine, climbed several slag heaps, enjoyed the distant views of the Ruhr area and had a "surprise guest" along the way. Moving images of the tour can be found here: https://youtu.be/ix5UnB6Y1Hw

A very nice and varied tour. However, the duration of the tour should not be underestimated.

On a very short notice (just yesterday) we went to Essen today to start the Zollvereinsteig. The tour starts at the Zollverein Nord train station. From there it is only a few minutes' walk to the trail. For a while you walk along roads near the Zollverein mine, but not for too long. Then the route branches off into one of the many parks it passes through. The path leads you through the complex past flowering bushes, a monument and a small pond with feathered residents and their fluffy offspring. Back on the road you come to the Carl mine with the sign saying that driving through and walking through is prohibited. 10 meters away within sight there is an official cycle path sign. Let's just say that nobody stopped me when I walked past the prohibition sign. And when the next walkers and cyclists appeared in front of me, it didn't matter anyway. Some of the buildings on the site look very old, but I really liked their special charm. Now you reach the first of three cemeteries that the path runs over. You should also behave appropriately quietly there. Of course, right? And then it's time to climb up the Schurenbachhalde. Up the stairs! I've never been up the slag heap in good weather and today the 5% chance of rain was there just in time. Nevertheless, it's always cool up there! On the way down I got lost in the loops of the path and had to walk back a bit. Typical! I took my half-time break at a small pond (a little earlier) and suddenly the sun actually came out. It works! Near the Rhine-Herne Canal I took a detour off the path because I wanted to see the red canal bridge. Unfortunately it's not accessible and not so easy to photograph because of the gaps in the gate. But it worked a little. At least! Back on the path I headed towards the Eickwinkel slag heap. From above you can look back to the slab on the Schurenbachhalde. And there are good views in the other directions too. I really liked the slag heap! After a very long stretch of the path along a meadow, you pass the building of the "Verband Deutscher Brieftaubenzüchter e.V." and continue hiking to the Zollverein slag heap. The way up was very relaxed, but the way down the tour suddenly took on the wilderness. Overgrown paths, muddy and slippery ground...I soon looked like a thing from the swamp. When the route then wanted to send me across a swampy meadow (yes, officially!), I preferred to make a detour. I thought I was dirty enough, like that! You continue hiking past the second cemetery and along narrow paths through greenery, sometimes reaching quiet streets, but on the whole the path takes you somewhere green wherever possible. Well planned and done! And another park and another cemetery and suddenly Zollverein is very close again. BUT there is another section that leads over a mountain bike route. Be careful there! There was nothing going on today, but when it's in operation it must be incredibly dangerous here. At the end the trail actually leads to the coal washing plant and around it. I've been there before, but I've never seen the area in the sun. So I skipped the detour and went to look at the winding tower instead. I've always liked it there, but it was even more beautiful with blue skies and sunshine! And I actually got back to the point on the tour where I started. From there it was a short hop to the train station, from where I headed home again. The same applies to this trail: have the route on your phone! The signs are not uncommon... let's call it "ambiguous". The new shoes coped very well with the kilometers. First tour with flying colors! That means we've hiked three out of four trails in the Ruhr area. Now all that's missing is the Deilbachsteig, but given its length and altitude, that will probably take a while.

The Zollvereinsteig was only opened a few days ago as the third path of its kind in Essen. In typical April weather, the appraisal began, and soon the sun came out.