Rodalben

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E-Bikes Unknown

Rodalben is one of the official routes of the Mountainbikepark Pfälzerwald. The Mountainbikepark features 20 well-marked cross country routes through the Naturpark Pfälzerwald, one of the largest contiguous forests in Germany.

This route features mostly dirt and gravel roads, but does include 10-20% singletrack, a rare feature in Germany. There are a couple of good climbs with matching descents. The ruins of a castle can be seen off in the distance, and there is an observation tower at the high point that affords a view of most of the Pfälzerwald.

Overall, this is a peaceful cross country route through forest - a good chance to commune with nature. It is not a technical delight, but it will give you a good workout.

The route is a figure-8 meeting in the small hamlet of Leimen. If 38 miles isn't to your liking, either half of the figure-8 makes for a nice ride.

This ride starts at the train station in Rodalben. In general, the trains in Germany are very bike friendly. Most regional trains (IRE, RE, RB, S-bahn) have special cars or areas for bikes - look for the large bike symbol painted on the outside of the car. You'll need a separate ticket for the bike which should be about 5 Euro. Prohibitions may be in place during rush hour in/near major cities however. Some Intercity Express (ICE) trains also allow bikes, but you'll definitely need a reservation and separate ticket.

This route crosses the Felsenwanderweg (F) Trail several times. The Felsenwanderweg (F) Trail is a hiking trail, and I am 95% sure it is off limits to bikes (except for the short portion shared with this route which is clearly marked for bikes). Germans take their rules seriously, so continue on the Felsenwanderweg (F) Trail at your own risk.

The route starts at the train station in Rodalben. The route is well-marked with official signage, so you could go without a GPX, but why would you do that?

You'll start out by twisting through the streets of Rodalben to get to the first segment, Hubertusfelsen. Notice the bridge over the Rodalb River has a separate weight limit for tanks (!). There used to be a huge US military base in Kaiserslautern just to the north - now there is only a small one.

Along Hubertusfelsen, there are three climbs of about 100 m (300 ft), mostly on gravel or dirt forest roads before you reach Leimen. There are a few sections of singletrack, including a notable one on the descent of the second climb. This portion of the route features some interesting rock formations between the first and second climbs. In particular, the Hubertusfelsen summit may be worth the short detour - there is a sign marking the way.

For a good bit of the way, the ruins of a castle are visible in front of you from the trail and it seems like the trail might be taking you there. Sadly that is not the case. The ruins are on the Schloßberg mountain (Castle Mountain), about 1 km west of Merzalben.

The second section, Schwarzbach begins in Leimen. It follows forest road along the Schwarzbach Creek but is otherwise unremarkable. There is a small lake, Weiher, which offers the possibility for a swim if you like. Schmalerkoph takes you to the smaller hamlet of Johanneskreuz.

In Johanneskreuz, you start with another short climb and then enjoy 4 km (2.5 mi) riding at the 500-m (1600-ft) contour. Then you begin a steep 100-m (300-ft) singletrack climb to the summit of the Eschkopf (608 m; 1995 ft). You'll cross the B48 highway in the middle of this climb. There is an observation tower on the summit that offers a great view.

From the Eschkopf, it's mostly downhill again along dirt roads and singletracks back down to Leimen. There are a couple of historical markers (Kapitainshütte) and (Preußenstein) near the 8-km (5-mi) mark. These mark the spots of a Prussian captain's hut and observation point dating from the time of the French Revolution.

When you reach Leimen again, the Schmalerkopf forest roads take you back towards Rodalben over one more short climb. After a road segment through the village of Clausen, the final segment, Dreiweiherbach, takes you down into a small valley where the forest opens up for a moment. The route merges with the Felsenwanderweg (F) Trail hiking trail for the short climb out of the valley and then you take more forest roads back to Rodalben.