Jakobsweg Etappe 5: Lechbruck - Auerberg

As early as the 1st century AD, the Romans conquered the land south of the Danube as the province of Raetia, with Augsburg as its capital. This marked the beginning of the historical period for this region. Trade routes were built, and a branch of the Via Claudia Augusta ran past the Auerberg into the Kaufbeuren area, where it met the Kempten-Epfach road.

These trade routes were also popular with medieval pilgrims heading to Santiago. So you can be pretty sure that you are not only following in the footsteps of the Romans, but also those of pilgrims to Santiago. The route alternates between asphalt roads, meadows and forest paths from Lechbruck to Echerschwang. In the center of the village, our shell marker leads you along a footpath to the right towards Vogelegg, which joins the road to Ried at Angerhof.

Follow this road to the right for approx. 500 m, pass the turn-off to Wieshof and after approx. 200 m turn left onto a meadow path, which takes you directly to Bernbeuren. Behind the church, you leave the village on the road towards Auerberg, after approx. 500 m a footpath branches off to the right, which leads up to the 1055 m high Auerberg.

From Echerschwang, you can also follow the former prelate's path to reach the Auerberg via Oberlinden, Angerhof, Thalhof (remarkable chapel), Straß and Sennhof. The Auerberg offers a fantastic panoramic view of the entire German Alps, especially on clear, foehn days. Also worth seeing on the Auerberg is the pilgrimage church of St. Georg with its Romanesque tower and the late Gothic Mother of God.

Hiking map Pfaffenwinkel, scale 1:40,000, HW-Verlag, nominal fee 1 EUR, available from the Pfaffenwinkel Tourist Office, www.pfaffen-winkel.de