Alb Valley Cycle Tour

The Albtäler-Radweg is signposted with arrow signposts indicating the distance to the next town and the more distant destinations. The logo of the Albtäler-Radweg is inserted at the main signpost locations. Between the main signpost locations, the route is marked by small cycle route signs with arrows.

Section 1: From the Lone Valley to the Danube Valley - 29 km

Our cycle tour through the valleys of the Swabian Alb starts in Amstetten, for more than 150 years the "mountain station" and junction of the railway between Ulm and Stuttgart. From here, the museum trains of the Local Railway of Amstetten-Gerstetten and the Albbähnle to Oppingen run every Sunday and public holiday between May and October.

The source of the Lone is soon reached in Urspring. Here the water that seeped through the karst rock on the Alb emerges again - crystal clear and in colours ranging from turquoise to deep blue. From the source, the Lone Valley Cycle Path accompanies us via Lonsee to Westerstetten and leads us through the valley of caves and mammoth hunters. In the beautifully restored station in Westerstetten, the doors are open for refreshments on Sundays and public holidays.

We pass the village of Breitingen with the newly restored Schönrainmühle and Bernstadt. It is worth taking a detour there to visit the former patrician castle from 1549 with its local history collection. Behind Bernstadt we cross one of the most romantic parts of the Lonetal. At the "Fohlenhaus" cave formation, we can take another rest at the shelter with barbecue area and fortify ourselves for the short and steep ascent ahead.

Out of the forest, Langenau is already ahead of us and we enjoy the view into the wide Danube valley. In the imposing little town, interspersed with springs and streams, we find everything that a cyclist's heart desires.

Section 2: From the Danube valley into the Brenz valley - 31 km

The tour now leads through the flat Donauried, a huge wetland area with many naturally protected areas. From here, millions of people in the state of Baden-Württemberg and the greater Stuttgart area are supplied with drinking water by the state water supply company. The "Erlebniswelt Grundwasser" exhibition in the pumping station is well worth seeing. Soon the trail climbs back up to the edge of the Alb to Rammingen. In the small district of Lindenau, the cyclist finds a hearty stop with a beer garden against the backdrop of a 13th century monastery. We now return to the valley of the caves and pass by what are probably the best-known caves in the Lone Valley. The mammoth hunters of the Ice Age carved some of the oldest works of art in human history from mammoth ivory in their shelter. The Lion Man from the Hohlenstein Massif and the Birdherd Horse and Mammoth from the Vogelherd Cave are among the most famous representatives.

From the Vogelherdhöhle (currently closed) we cycle along a little road through the last section of the Lone Valley and reach the further valley of the Hürbe. There the varied area of the HöhlenErlebnisWelt in Giengen-Hürben spreads out before us. A long rest is in order here, as the adventure playground, cave and adventure museum leave nothing to be desired. If the hustle and bustle is too much for you, you can cycle briefly towards Burgberg to take a break at the nature playground near the Madonna.

From the cave centre, the journey continues on the "Albtäler" cycle path into the Brenz valley to Hermaringen and Giengen. In the capital of teddy bears, a visit to the Steiff Museum should not be missed.

Section 3: From the Brenztal to the Eselsburger Tal via the Alb to the Roggental - 55 km

Continue through the Brenztal valley to Herbrechtingen. Passing through the town, the cycle path leads us shortly before the monastery into the legendary Eselsburg valley. After a densely populated section of the Brenz surrounded by industry, we now cycle through a section that leads us into a magical seclusion. A rocky landscape embedded in juniper heaths accompanies us imposingly. The Stony Virgins stand out dominantly. The village of Eselsburg itself is just as idyllic. At Bindsteinmühle we leave the valley and have to pedal hard or descend briefly for the Albaufstieg. At the top, a typical Alb plateau spreads out before us and we dive into the Caribbean of prehistoric times. Between 150 and 15 million years ago, the land was flooded by the primeval seas. Deposits left numerous traces, which we will now discover on the rest of the journey. In Heldenfingen, it is worth taking a short detour to the Heldenfinger Kliff, where you can rest at a wonderful resting place. The 15-million-year-old surf cliff is unique and still shows the bore shell holes. In Gerstetten we come across the remains of the 150-million-year-old Jurassic sea, the fossilised corals, in the Riff and Railway Museum. This is where the railway line from Amstetten ends. We now follow this to Gussenstadt. The numerous wind turbines already give us an inkling that the Alb is rougher here.

Shortly before Waldhausen, we cross the European watershed between the Danube and the Rhine and leave the former dead-straight Roman road towards Böhmenkirch. On the way through the Zillerforst, we cross the foothills of the Magental and reach the village of Steinenkirch, first mentioned in a document in 1275. Continue past the Ravenstein ruins in the direction of Trasenberg to the Lindenhof farm with its ostrich farm worth seeing. Shortly before Böhmenkirch, the Albtäler branches off to Treffelhausen. Now you descend to the end of the Roggen valley. At the end of Treffelhausen we come across the Eybquelle spring, which feeds the romantic little river through the Roggental.

The "Obere Roggenmühle" is nestled in the narrow valley and is now a popular excursion destination with trout breeding. The bubbling water from the Mordloch, a cave filled with water, fills the trout ponds and flows into the Eyb at the end of the mill.
The route continues along the Eyb and through the "Eybtal" nature reserve to Eybach. 20 striking Weißjura rocks, near-natural forests, numerous gorge forests and blades, springs, streams, orchards and 400 animal and plant species, some of which are on the Red List of endangered species, are among the special features of the nature reserve. The Himmelsfelsen (Sky Rock) towers high above Eybach, and the castle of the Counts of Degenfeld still shines in the town in the classicist style. Leaving the natural Roggental valley, we reach Geislingen an der Steige. Probably the most beautiful view of Geislingen and its five valleys, which are interspersed with a lot of industry, can be had from the Helfenstein ruins.

Section 4: From the Eybtal valley through the Filstal valley - 22 km

From Geislingen our tour leads along the rebuilt old railway line of the "Täleskätter", through the Geißentäle with its typical juniper heaths into the next Alb valley, the Upper Filstal. The first stop is the Thermalbad Bad Überkingen, which invites you to take a longer break. Those who don't have so much time enjoy some relaxation in the spa park with its spring temple and water cascades. Visible from afar, the "Hausener Wand" soon presents itself, a 250-metre-high towering rock face that was formed after a rock slide at the end of the last Ice Age. We continue cycling up the Fils via Hausen and Reichenbach/Täle to Deggingen with its Capuchin monastery and Ave Maria pilgrimage church, which is known far beyond the region. Here you can retreat for silent prayer or take part in a guided tour of the monastery by the Capuchin monks. Those who make it up the steep climb on the other side of the Fils, past the Hertler sheep farm, to the Nordalb will be surprised by a beautiful and untouched heath landscape and a hute forest.
Nearly one kilometre further on, we reach the spa town of Bad Ditzenbach. A break to relax in the Vinzenz Therme can't hurt.
When cycling in the Filstal valley, we are accompanied by meadow orchards and juniper heaths grazed by sheep and goats on the slopes of the Alb ridge.
Shortly before the source of the Fils, we reach the state-recognised resort town of Wiesensteig. The charming town is characterised by its over 1150-year-old history.

Section 5: From the source of the Fils to the Alb - 50 km

From Wiesensteig we cycle further up the "Obere Filstal" to the Filsursprung. The quiet, idyllic valley is ideal for a rest before continuing into the next Alb valley, the Hasental, past the railway station and once again up onto the high plateaus of the Alb.

In Westerheim, the mountain village with great offers for families and those seeking recreation, we have reached the highest point of the tour and from there it's all downhill after the last kilometres with moderate intermediate climbs. From Westerheim, it is worth making a detour to the nearby Schertelshöhle.
Continuing along the Albhöhe, we reach Laichingen on wonderful cycle paths. Here we come across the Laichinger Tiefenhöhle - the deepest show cave in Germany, accessible down to a depth of 55 metres - with a rest house and cave museum. Right next to it, courage and a sporting challenge are required in the climbing forest.
Shortly after Merklingen, we cycle through a beautiful dry valley so typical of the Alb.

Our next destination is Nellingen. Here, a particularly tasty and rare Alb-Whisky is distilled at the Landgasthof Krone. With a little luck, the landlord will give you a tour of his refuge and let you take in the scent and aroma of the golden Alb whisky with your mouth and nose.
We continue through wide fields, along rows of old fruit trees. We now leave the Alb plateau and return to Amstetten, our former starting point.