Dierdorfer Weg

The hike begins in Dierdorf at the Schlossweiher. First, we cross the B413 and see the Unterturm, also called the "Owl Tower," which was built around 1357 by Emperor Charles IV when city rights were granted to Dierdorf. At its rear part begins the old Dierdorf town wall, along which we still walk briskly. At the Obertorstraße roundabout, we leave the town center and turn right towards the school center and kindergarten. The Holzbach creek accompanies us further along the path, passing the old Jewish cemetery, to the district of Giershofen. At the village entrance, immediately behind the bridge over the Holzbach, is the historic fire brigade pump house. Here, the D-Weg continues through the village, over Rotherhof Street through forest and meadow landscape to the pond systems at Hof Roth. There, many water birds can be observed in the wild.

Behind Hof Roth, the A3 and the fast railway line are crossed through an underpass, and we enter the Maischeid forest. In the middle of this, an information board tells more about the arable farming "Wölbäcker am Merzberg." Its remnants can still be seen on the forest floor. After only a short distance, we reach the idyllic Stebach landscape pond. Benches invite you to linger, but not too long, as there is still a good stretch ahead of us. After a short and steep climb, we leave the forest and enter the municipality of Großmaischeid. The path initially passes the forest hotel with restaurant or a place to eat inside. Then it continues, first past riding stables and arenas, and then through the village. Before leaving the village, we turn into Isenburgerstraße. This leads directly to the historic footpath to Isenburg. Before that, you can enjoy wonderful distant views toward the Rhine valley, Kleinmaischeid, and Dernbacher Kopf from the hill behind Großmaischeid.

At the start of the historic footpath, we enter the forest again. This path must have existed in the Middle Ages as a connecting path between Großmaischeid and Isenburg. This is indicated by the old stone memorial cross from 1703 still standing in the middle of the forest. Anyone who can recognize, read, or decipher the inscription is welcome to tell me, and I would publish it here. In 1829, a crime was committed nearby in the dark forest. Johann Becker was found beaten to death, as a memorial site describes and attests. A steep path, passable only on foot, leads down to Isenburg. At the village entrance, you exit the forest and see ahead on the hill the castle ruins, which gave the village Isenburg its name. This castle was built around 1100 as a hill castle. After 1664, it decayed due to an inheritance dispute. Since 2005, the "Friendship Circle of Isenburg e.V." has been making considerable efforts to preserve the ruin. A visit is worthwhile, but perhaps you should plan this for another day. The D-Weg leads along the B413 through the village of Isenburg. Along the way, we pass to the right the "Porz," an old gate that belongs to the castle complex. A village museum, open in the summer months, is also integrated here.

Shortly before leaving the village towards Sayn, we turn right into Iserstraße, named after the Iserbach creek. We will now follow the Iserbach ceaselessly to its source below the Dernbacher Kopf. However, initially within the village of Isenburg, with its old half-timbered houses, partly built into the steep hillside, we continue through the initially narrow valley. On the left, shortly after the village exit, we reach pond systems (formerly owned by the Meisel family) with the managed fisherman's hut Isertal. Here, you can stop, refresh yourself, and recover from previous exertions. On our further path, we leave the paved road about half a kilometer behind the pond systems. At this point, the Steinebachtal valley branches off to the left. The trail then leads us over a natural path up to the Thalhauser mill. There again is an opportunity to stop. The premium hiking trail "Iserbachschleife" accompanies us for a good stretch. At the height of the Mühlenhof, it then turns left, and our path continues through the Iserbach valley towards Kleinmaischeid. The D-Weg leaves this village to the right and turns left at the Kleinmaischeid grill hut. Through the now beginning Dierdorf Märker forest, we hike upwards towards Dernbacher Kopf. Below it, we cross the L258, as well as the nearby fast railway line and A3, the latter two via an underpass. It is not far to the entrance of Dernbach. Before Dernbach, we take a right through an entrance to the local fitness trail. We stay on this for a while and circle Dernbach in the forest until we reach the Max and Moritz oaks. There we reach the Dernbach valley and follow it on firm paths through forest and fields back to Dierdorf. If you pay attention to follow the Dernbach, you cannot get lost, as it flows into and feeds the Dierdorf Schlossweiher, which we hopefully reach safely after a long day hike as the starting point of our hike.