As of: March 30, 2024, 1:43 p.m
By: Lilli Schaule
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A hiker stands at the southernmost point in Germany, the Haldenwanger Eck. The route of the North South Trail is marked in red on the right. Little goes through Bavaria. © Soulboy
A long-distance hiking trail across Germany. On the North South Trail, hiking enthusiasts can hike from the northernmost to the southernmost point in the country. However, they don't come through Bavaria often.
Bavaria – 3,620 kilometers of hiking route, 90,000 meters in altitude and crossing 10 federal states. We're talking about the North South Trail, the long-distance hiking trail from the northernmost to the southernmost point in Germany. 35 existing hiking trails and 30 German national parks were connected to form a hiking route. It quickly becomes apparent that the route hardly runs through Bavaria. The route only runs through the Free State shortly before Lindau near Nonnenhorn on Lake Constance and in the Allgäu near Lindenberg, Oberstaufen and Obersdorf. Why is that?
“When planning the North South Trail, existing hiking trails were used. Many of the really great and beautiful hiking trails in the southwest of Bavaria run more in a southwest direction,” explains press and public relations officer Robin Schaumann in an interview with our editorial team. These did not become part of the long-distance hiking trail because they do not run directly in the direction of the southernmost point in Germany, the boundary stone 147 at Haldenwanger Eck in the Allgäu.
“A hiking trail by hikers for hikers” – that’s what the project is all about
A 300,000 kilometer long hiking network and yet no hiking route across Germany. The YouTuber from the
SoulTrails
channel wanted to change that. So he started planning the North South Trail in 2018. Two years later,
Soulboy
hiked
it himself for the first time. Since then, a large network has emerged around the long-distance hiking trail. “The North South Trail is a hiking trail made by hikers for hikers!” says Schaumann in an interview. He walked the route himself in 2022 - he was on the road for 187 days. 14 volunteers are currently part of the initiative behind the long-distance hiking trail and organize everything related to the project.
Clear rules: Hike in full length and without interruption
The rules behind the hiking project are simple. The trail must be hiked in one go within one calendar year. Breaks may not last longer than one and a half weeks - except in the case of illness or family concerns. When hikers have successfully completed the North South Trail, they are so-called thru-hikers. So you have hiked the long-distance hiking trail from start to finish in its entirety and without interruption. The route is documented in a digital stamp book. The North South Trail has already registered a total of 16 thru-hikers. “Many long-distance hikers simply go on such long journeys for themselves and also want to enjoy the peace and quiet,” informs the project’s website. The exact number of thru-hikers is therefore not known. But hikers who don't complete the North South Trail can also record their route. They are then so-called
section hikers.
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“Obtain permission for signage from each individual municipality.”
The biggest challenge so far is an official signage for the path. So far, the initiative has relied on existing signs and a GPS system. The desire for our own signage for the North South Trail has increased over the years. “Theoretically, we would have to obtain permission for the signage from each individual municipality,” says Schaumann in an interview. Since the long-distance hiking trail goes through 600 German communities, this is difficult. That's why those responsible rely on cooperation with the operators of the established hiking trails. And with success. “Permission to sign another, larger section of the route is imminent,” explains the press officer.
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The North South Trail is establishing itself step by step. In the future, more and more hiking enthusiasts are likely to cross Germany from the northernmost to the southernmost point.
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