Wormsa Valley

   Leaving the parking lot, cross the bridge to the right towards the Chalets de la Wormsa, then take the path on the left and follow along the Fecht. At the stele of Engineer François, take a left towards “Lac du Fischbœdle via the Wormsa Valley.” At the next junction, stay left towards “Mittlach Parking Valneige” to pass in front of the sculpture of the last bear killed here in 1760. Then leave the path to the right towards “Fischbœdle via the Wormsa Valley” (red square). At the memorial dedicated to Emile IMMER, president of the Club Vosgien of Munster from 1881 to 1891, who opened this walking route in 1884, follow the path that rises to the left to walk along the mountainside through large screes. After the beautiful waterfalls of the Wormsa stream and several small bridges, you reach the path that slopes up to Lac du Fischbœdle (Fisch = fish, Bœdle = small wet flat). Overlooked by the Wasserfelsen Waterfall, this very picturesque lake, occupying the bottom of the cirque carved by the Ammelthal Glacier, sits at the foot of immense screes in a wild setting of rocks and greenery. It was the industrialist from Munster Jacques HARTMANN who built the dam to make it a trout reservoir. The old gazebo was rebuilt in 2007 by the Club Vosgien. Look for the grouse above it.

   Descending from Lac du Fischbœdle, stay on the drivable path to the left (red sign) which leads you to the tunnel dug into a rocky spur. 500 meters further, take the forest path to the right indicated by a “Cable car 14-18” sign, which descends to the valley bottom. The visible remains on the left are those of the cable car built by the French army descending from Hohneck. After a small farm, continue straight to rejoin the starting path that brings you back to the parking lot.

   Possible extension: At Lac du Fischbœdle, take the path on the right (red square) ascending towards “Schiessrothried.” Higher up you cross a forest path: take it to the right for 20 meters before taking the red square path on the left before the bridge that runs alongside the stream. Lac du Schiessrothried, located at the foot of Hohneck, was originally just a wet area and became a real lake in 1891 with the construction of a 150-meter dam designed to regulate the water flow to the textile factories and sawmills of the Munster valley. Upon reaching the end of the dam, take the path on your left (blue square) toward the “Spitzkoepfe.” After 300 m of ascent, turn left toward “Ammelthal” (blue square). Arriving on a flat area, the “Premier Spitzkopf” sign leads to the viewpoint (1021 m) overlooking Lac de Fischboedle and offering a magnificent view over the Wormsa valley. Then return by the same path, heading to “Schiessrothried” then “Fischbœdle.”