Hegauer Kegelspiel premium hiking trail – Hegau volcano Tour

A truly beautiful tour over Hohentwiel, Hohenkrähen, Mägdeburg, and Hohenhewen 🏰☀️ It was very challenging and definitely pushed me to my limits 😅 But it's all the more rewarding to see what my body is capable of now, something that would have been unthinkable a few years ago.

I was inspired to do the Hegau volcano tour by @Ute at the beginning of the year. I love the Hegau volcanoes and was immediately taken with the idea of hiking six of them in one day. The volcano trail doesn't always lead over the summit, but you can deviate from the trail now and then. Each volcano offers several highlights: castle ruins, views, steep ascents and descents, and one of my favorite places: the quarry on Hohenstoffel. The surroundings are also very beautiful and the view is quite clear today. Nevertheless, I cannot fully recommend the volcano tour. It is well signposted, but some sections of the trail are not particularly well maintained for a premium trail. I have included some photos. I found a 300 m long section across a raised meadow particularly annoying. I had to reassure myself several times that I was really on the right track.

I've had the Hegau volcanoes on my list for ages, but somehow it never worked out... Now, in 2021, the premium path "Vulkan-Tour" from Engen to Singen has also been set up, now it's really time. But since the path usually runs past the peaks, I put together my own tour from Premium, Querweg FR-Bodensee and some wild paths. I started at Engen train station, and the Hohenhewen as the first highlight is a real calf biter😅 About 4 km after the start you are up there, the modest remains of the castle have been crowned by a small viewing platform since the 1890s. 10 km further then the next highlight, which almost disappeared: the Hohenstoffeln was badly nibbled by basalt mining until 1939, but then it became one of the first German nature reserves. Through the abandoned quarry, the structure of the basalt layers is very nice to see, but the ascent over wild trails is pretty steep. There are only pitiful remains of the once three castles, but there is a summit cross and a small shelter. The descent is really fun, but towards the end the paths become very natural, until you get back to the crossroads to the Hegaukreuz. In quick succession you then reach Mägdeburg (the ascent via the path to the climbing garden is very cool, but towards the end it becomes T3 itself...), the Offerenbühl (exceptionally no castle ruins, but a summit/memorial cross) and the Hohenkrähen. This again has a crisp climb and a great all-round view, even in today's hazy weather. Staufen is the penultimate castle complex on the program, but you can safely skip that: minimal remains in the middle of the forest, therefore practically no view. Unfortunately, the map material is not OK here either, so the route continues in the direction of Hohentwiel for an expedition through the nettle forest 🙄 Here it is better to go directly from the Hohenkrähen via the Querweg to the Hohentwiel - then, unlike me, you might be there in time for a visit. The descent from Hohentwiel is usually via the Ten-Brink-Weg, so you almost completely circle the mountain. There is always a risk of falling rocks, but the path is currently completely closed due to rock fall - so the only way back is actually the same. Here the whole asphalt bends to its knees, fortunately it goes quite nicely along the Aach and through the garden show area before you get past the center to the train station. Overall a great tour with a reasonable proportion of paths - little forest on the way, but numerous meadows and dry grassland, so spring is the best time for this round.

After the same old rounds of the house all winter, today we went for a proper hike. It was lovely.

The Hegauer Vulkantour was opened in 2021 and certified as a premium hiking trail. It starts in Singen and goes around the Hegauberge Hohentwiel, Hohenkrähen, Mägdeberg, Hohenstoffeln and Hohenhewen. With a tour length of around 30 kilometers and an altitude difference of around 900 metres, it is a challenge as a day tour. If you want to take all the peaks with you, there is an additional distance of 6 kilometers and 340 meters in altitude. Right at the beginning, it leads from the Landesgartenschau station in Singen on beautiful paths through the highest vineyard in Germany in the direction of Hohentwiel. The landscape is characterized by rough meadows, dry stone walls, vineyards and is dominated by the Hohentwiel fortress ruins. Busy city noises rise again and again, the hiking remains unclouded. The path circles the mountain, crosses the gray band of the highway and then plunges into the forest. Alternating between forest and meadows and always garnished with beautiful views, the path leads past the Hegauhaus restaurant and to the Hohenkrähen. On the Hegau plateau, continue to the Mägdeberg, which offers the shortest ascent to one of the ruins, and then continue via the Hegaukreuz in the direction of Weiterdingen. Here I leave the official path because dark clouds have piled up in the sky. I don't want to get caught in a downpour today. So I decide to shorten the tour a bit. At the Binninger Ried and at the foot of the Hohenhewen, my way takes me to the bus stop in Welschingen, where I end my tour for today. I actually needed the rain jacket.

Today the route went from Engen to Singen. As ordered by Peter, golden October was announced! 🤗 However, the path was still soapy and slippery at times, which required great concentration with strong ups and downs in the meantime. Still a really cool route, as it goes over the volcanoes Hohenhewen, Hohenstoffel and Hohentwiel and there are also detours to the castle ruins of Hohenhewen, Magdeberg and Hohenkrähen. I really liked the view of Singen with Lake Constance in the background...😀

Another year has passed and the 6 mountains hike is on the to do list. This time with 2 dear friends from Klettgau. Just a dream 😻