Siebengebirge - Leyberg & Himmerich

This hike takes us to the local mountain of Bad Honnef, the Himmerich, and to one of the most beautiful views in the Siebengebirge, the Leybergspitze. Both mountains are former stone quarry areas, both of which still have recognizable brake track traces on their mountain flanks, steeply leading from the mountain peak into the valley and on which the broken rock was transported into the Mucherwiesental. From here, the transport continued along the stone path (now Steinstraße) and sand path (now Bahnhofstraße) to the Rhine. There were cranes and barges in the Rhine arm to deliver the basalt or latite further downstream to the construction sites. We start at the youth hostel and take the narrow path below the parking lot, pass gardens behind the buildings, and turn left at the end of the path into the meadows. Passing the newly built Eifelblickhütte, we enter the Menzenberger Valley and climb, partly steeply, towards the wide forest path towards Leyberg. After the magnificent view on the Leybergspitze, we hike down into the Mucherwiesental and turn towards Himmerich at the Mäcki-Hütte. There we enjoy another view and sit on the benches in the sun for a short rest. Until a few months ago, this hike was still characterized by old spruce forests; now extensive clearings with new views have emerged due to the bark beetle infestation.