Bi3 - Rupbach Loop

From the hiking parking lot, head southwest down the grassy path, then take the first path on the right, which leads you toward the village and across County Road K 42. Cross the road and immediately turn left to head downhill on the light-colored gravel path. Soon you’ll be hiking through the forest parallel to a ditch or a V-shaped valley.

V-shaped valley
This valley type is also called a V-valley, where the “V” clearly illustrates the cross-section of such a
valley. It is a valley with steep, elongated (not vertical!)
slopes that end on both sides only at the watercourse. Consequently, the valley floor and
the riverbed are identical; there is no floodplain. V-shaped valleys are formed by the erosive force
(erosion) of the watercourse. Many valleys in the Taunus, especially those of small tributaries, have
this shape.

The descent ends at the K 42, where you keep to the right, cross the Rupbach, and then, keeping to the left, walk a few steps uphill on the L 322 (toward Katzenelnbogen). Shortly after the K 42 turnoff toward Kördorf, take the forest trail that runs parallel to the K 42. The trail leads uphill through a V-shaped valley. On this section of the trail—as on many other forest trails—you can observe the effects of windthrow and bark beetle infestation.

Bark Beetles
There are various species of bark beetles, each “specialized” in certain trees.
In the case of spruce trees, these are primarily the European spruce bark beetle and the copper-stamp bark beetle. These pests
usually only infest trees that are diseased or dying due to heat, drought, windthrow, or snow breakage
. Female bark beetles bore tunnels into the bark and lay their eggs there.
The hatched larvae then eat their way deeper into the wood, thereby further damaging the tree or '
its host plant. As young beetles, they leave the tree through holes in the bark and
seek out a new home nearby. This starts the cycle all over again and ultimately leads
to the eventual death of groups of trees. You can often see this from a
distance while hiking.

Continue climbing through the forest and turn left at the end of this path. At first, the trail continues at roughly the same elevation, and then you descend the path to the right through sparse forest toward the Rupbach Valley. At the end of this path, turn left and continue downhill on a paved former county road, passing fish ponds in the floodplain toward the L 322. At the junction where the hiking trail meets the country road, you’ll see a large hollow in the hillside on your left—a former small quarry where quarry stone and schalfels were mined. Further down in the Rupbach Valley, you’ll find slate piles; roofing slate was once produced here

Slate
The Taunus, like the Westerwald and the Hunsrück and Eifel regions on the left bank of the Rhine, are part of the Rhenish
Slate Mountains. A typical characteristic of slate is that it can be split into thin slabs—or, as nature
often dictates, it is already split that way. These slate slabs are used, among other things, to protect the weather-facing side of half-timbered houses
or to cover roofs. In the Taunus, such slate extraction sites in the landscape
are not called “quarries” because the rock is not blasted out, but rather “Steinkaut.”
Instead, the rock is chipped away—after all, blasting would only leave you with useless
slate debris!

After a few steps along the L 322, turn right again immediately onto a forest path. Passing more fish ponds, you’ll climb uphill until you reach the edge of the forest, where you’ll continue up the slope to the right. A longer stretch through the open highlands with their fields follows. Once you’ve left the edge of the forest, you’ll see three clusters of trees in the distance on your left; the source of the Rupbach is located in the middle one. It’s also worth looking back from the high ground, as you can now see Schaumburg Castle near Balduinstein and the peaks of the Westerwald.

The trail descends from the high ground, and at a junction in the fields—where the paved road begins—turn left, cross the L 322, and continue slightly uphill through the fields—Biebrich comes into view on your left! After passing a group of trees, turn left and head downhill toward the forest. There, you’ll walk briefly along County Road K 44 and turn right into the forest at the first opportunity.

The path leads straight down, and at a fork with a young tree grove, take the right path, which leads you around the colorful mix of trees on your left. Following the outer edge of the forest, you’ll soon reach the open high ground with fields and meadows that already belong to Biebrich. From here, the path back to the hiking parking lot is already visible and impossible to miss.