Hikes in Emskirchen

Hike 15 of the Trimmclub Weitersdorf on 07.05.2011 from Weißendorf to Emskirchen

Streams, riverside paths, mixed forests, and rows of carp pondsMost hikers only know Neustadt an der Aisch as a place to pass through or as a transfer station. Insiders know that the old margrave town is also a starting point for interesting hikes. We can only recommend trying one route or another. Our favorite is the Strahlbach tour, which leads to the southeastern surroundings and returns to the town along the Strahlbach with its chain of ponds.

Circular route in the Frankenhöhe Nature Park Fox marking (well signposted) nice afternoon walk

marked circular route, but not continuous

Marked circular route of Markt Emskirchen

marked circular route of the municipality of Hagenbüchach

Varied hike in Middle Franconia

​Only a remnant of the main castle’s wall and scattered sections of the inner and outer moats offer a glimpse of what Schauerberg Castle once looked like. The former margrave’s administrative castle from the 14th century lies hidden in the beech forest above the small village of Altschauerberg. As the trail continues, we hike a short distance through the Aurach Valley with its lush meadows and fields, where birds of prey can often be spotted, especially in the morning hours.> We begin our hike at the fairgrounds on Ansbacher Straße in Emskirchen 01. A paved path leads us away from the main road in just a few minutes, crossing a bridge over the Mittlere Aurach. From here, we follow the blue cross toward the Schauerberg Ruins. After just a few meters, we reach a fork in the trail, where we keep to the right. The trail quickly ascends through fields and then through the woods, curves to the right, and enters the forest. After a few minutes, we follow the blue cross to the left up a steep slope. At the T-junction, we turn right and walk a good 300 meters straight ahead, continuing toward the Schauerberg Ruins. At the trail marker sign, we follow the blue bar; it leads us straight ahead, slightly diagonally to the right, onto a path that winds up and down toward the Schauerberg Ruins 02. Passing the ruins, we now follow the blue bar downhill. After a short stretch, it leads us left across the meadow and down to the road. At Neuschauerberg, we cross the ST2244 straight ahead and follow the blue bar and the E2 further along the Aurachweg, alongside the Mittlere Aurach. It takes us to the Finkenmühle 03, where we keep to the left and follow the red dot toward Neidhardswinden. A farm road leads us into the forest, and soon we’re walking uphill on a forest path. After a good 5 minutes, we reach a large intersection where we turn left. The forest trail soon becomes a field path again. We reach Neidhardswinden 04. The red dot quickly leads us to the left toward the church, continuing uphill, just before the ST2244, then left again, and shortly thereafter right back to the main road. On the other side of the road, we turn left; after about 200 meters, we turn right again onto a dirt road. Following this road—and still following the red dot—we now walk straight ahead for almost half an hour, past fields and meadows. Then we reach the first houses with barns in Dürrnbuch 05. The path leads us to the main road: Here, we continue straight ahead for a few more minutes, now on the E1 toward Salzberg. At the “Wirtshaus zum Schattigen Garten,” we turn left and follow the path through the residential area to a T-intersection. Here we turn right, continuing to the end of the paved road, then left again. With some sections unmarked and others only sparsely marked, we now continue straight ahead along our path. After about 20 minutes, the path takes a left curve, now running along the edge of the forest. At the T-intersection, we turn right again, continuing along the edge of the forest. Shortly thereafter, there is a left curve; in the following right curve, we then turn left again. The gravel path now leads to Pond 06. Here, at the fork, turn left.

​Starting out through the shady birch grove, we soon follow the information signs for the Strahlbach Tour on this loop, which provide insights into the flora and fauna of the Strahlbach Valley. A short detour to the little village of Herrnneuses is well worth it for its 18th-century Baroque church, St. Matthäus. The section between Herrnneuses and the Häckerwald, which runs along the edge of the forest for a long stretch, is utterly romantic and is at its most beautiful in the fall, when it glows in a brilliant display of red, yellow, and orange. > We start our hike at the Galgenweiher 01 parking lot near Unterstrahlbach. First, we follow the N10 and the blue cross toward the forest. After passing several ponds, we finally turn right at the fork after 5 minutes. At the next intersection, we take the middle path and follow the blue cross up into the forest. After a good 10 minutes, we reach a T-intersection, where we turn right and walk downhill, out of the forest. At the “Strahlbachtour 02” information sign, we turn right and follow a meadow path. After 10 minutes, it joins a dirt road, which we follow uphill to the left, continuing on the N10. At the next T-intersection, we keep to the right and follow the path along the edge of the forest. The path quickly turns left, then right again, continuing along the edge of the forest and finally down through the orchard meadow to the gravel path. We now follow this path to the right for about 10 minutes until we reach the brick barn. Here, we follow our trail marker to the right up a gravel path. It takes us past another information sign with a resting bench 03 and finally into the forest. Once in the forest, we keep left at the next fork. The trail soon runs along the edge of the forest. At the road, we turn right; after a few meters, however, the trail continues to the left, once again along the edge of the forest. At the intersection after one and a half kilometers, we keep to the right; after a few meters, we immediately turn left again onto a trail leading into the Häckerwald 04. The trail winds down through the deciduous forest for a good 15 minutes; then, at the edge of town, we follow it to the gravel path. Here, we make a right turn and then immediately turn left again. The N10 and the red drop symbol finally lead us to the Lohmühle 05. At the road, we now follow the blue cross to the right. It takes us back to the Galgenweiher 01 parking lot in about 20 minutes.

> ​From the Neustadt an der Aisch 01 train station, we head toward the city center and turn onto Bahnhofstraße. Crossing the Plärrer, we turn onto Parkstraße, which narrows as it leads toward Stadtpark 02. Following the “N10” marker, we walk along the Strahlbach, passing the playground and the water house. Then we keep to the right, and with the stream on our right, we go through the tunnel to the other side of the railroad tracks. We turn left and continue on to the Lohmühle. Here, the Strahlbach splits, and we follow the stream to the right. The trail leads us uphill through the Häckerwald forest all the way to Water Tower 03. A short while later, we leave the forest and continue along the forest edge until we reach the road between Oberstrahlbach and Herrnneuses. We cross it to the right and shortly afterward turn left onto a dirt road. Herrnneuses is mostly visible to our right as we partially circle around the village as far as a barn. Here we turn left and walk past the edge of the field. At the next intersection 04, we have a choice: If you’d like to stop at the Baumhaus beer garden in Rennhofen (be sure to check the opening hours beforehand), continue straight ahead into the village. After this detour, the “WW” marker leads us back onto the trail. Otherwise, we follow the edge of the forest to the left and turn right before the Flugsbach. The path ends at a T-intersection, and we cross the stream to the left toward the forest. About 20 minutes later, we reach a large intersection, and the “N10” sign points us to the left through the Streitwald. At a wide forest road, we turn right and, after a long left curve, walk along a string of carp ponds. We reach Unterstrahlbach and pass under railroad line 05 here, then continue hiking to the left toward Neustadt. On a narrow path, we descend into the Strahlbach stream bed and reach the water house in the city park again. From here, we follow the familiar trail back to the Neustadt an der Aisch 01 train station.