Pfälzer Weinsteig Stage 9: Annweiler am Trifels - Klingenmünster

The ninth stage of the Weinsteig trail treats us to several highlights of the Palatinate. No fewer than eight picturesque ruins and castles line the route of our hike, including Trifels Castle and the ruins of Madenburg Castle. We can also discover some imposing sandstone massifs.

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No less than six castles and ruins, including the venerable Trifels Castle and the ruins of the Madenburg, take you back into history on this stage. From the spa garden town of Annweiler the trail goes in an easterly direction towards the castle of Trifels. The trip to this castle, where once the English king Richard the Lionheart was imprisoned, should not be missed.  We then pass by the forest tavern of  Barbarossa and encounter  the mighty sandstone cliffs of the ruins  of Anebos and Scharfenberg. These weathered rock formations are often used by  many rock climbers. Below the ruins of Scharfenberg the forest trail leads along the southern slopes of the Föhrlenberg to the ruins of Neukastel and the Madenburg on the other side. The path into the valley leads to the Slevogthof, the longtime home of the Impressionist, Max Slevogt. From the spa gardens  in Leinsweiler we then go on to the ruins of the Madenburg, one of the oldest and largest castles in the Palatinate which also hosts a tavern in its courtyard. A path leads down into the Kaiserbachtal and the ruins of Landeck with its inviting Burgschänke. Only a few steps now separate us from the wine town of Klingenmünster.