Ultrarunning the Westweg Trail in the Black Forest of Germany - Basel, Switzerland
My Inspiration for ultrarunning destination trips comes from a lot of places. One of the best ways though is from the experience of a friend. I’ve made a lot of friends who are German and this trip along the Westweg was inspired by two of them. These friends spent a lot of time in the area and one had even hiked part of the trail.
The Westweg trail is a 285k track that starts in Pforzheim, Germany and crosses the border into Basel, Switzerland. It is located in the Black Forest of Germany.
I planned my trip around two major points. The start was near to Basel and also home to the Feldsee Lake. In my research for the trip I’d seen plenty of amazing pictures of the area. I chose the town of Müllheim for the finish since it is almost exactly 50k from the start and had it’s own scenic destination. The town is home to a countryside castle, Neuenfels. I found tracks to the castle and back that were perfect for a Sunday morning run on the second day.
Germany has many great ultrarunning destinations I’ll be sharing later this year. This trail, being over 285k, has many opportunities for scenic runs and challenging terrain. Basel is convenient to every city in Europe, making it a convenient place to base an ultrarunning weekend. I used a car service for the most efficient transfer from the plane to the trail (but the driver could not comprehend just dropping me off on the side of the road). With more planning, it might be possible to do this trip via public transport. Hopefully you can time your trip with the fall weather change to see the trees in the height of their color.
I hope you are inspired to find your own ultrarunning destination!
