Great hiking traverse of the Vosges along the GR trails

This crossing of the Vosges massif will allow you to discover the riches of Alsace Verte as you walk.

From Wissembourg to Obersteinbach and then from fortified castle to fortified castle (Wittschloessel, Vieux Windstein, Nouveau Windstein), the route takes the GR 53 to the Schwarzbach valley. This valley has preserved a specific type of works from the Maginot Line: dams that could quickly flood it to slow down or even stop any invasion.

A long ascent to the Grand Wintersberg Tower, the highest point in the Northern Vosges, will be rewarded with a magnificent panorama before descending to the hydro-mineral station of Niederbronn-les-Bains: the most important thermal cure center in Alsace.

By the botanical path, we quickly access the ruins of the Wasenbourg castle that overlook Niederbronn-les-Bains. Further on, a short distance away, stands the observation tower of Wasenkoepfel from which we can slightly see to the southwest the castle of Lichtenberg that we will reach later. Before that, we pass by the ruins of the Grand Arnsbourg castle and cross the large forest mass that separates the Zinsel valley from the North and the Rothbach valley.