Düd­ing­hausen Geo­lo­gic­al Trail

Sauer­land was a trop­ic­al swim­ming para­dise mil­lions of years ago? Find traces of this along the themed route!

North Rhine-Westphalia has plenty of places with 500 million years of geological history to tell. One example is the village of Medebach-Düdinghausen. You can find out more about why this area was a tropical bathing paradise on the equator 320 million years ago or take a stroll among mussels, cephalopods and volcanoes on the site of a primordial tropical ocean in Sauerland. This area is home to the Geologischer Rundweg Düdinghausen (Düdinghausen Geological Trail), a themed trail running a good six kilometres along paths and trails in the midst of nature. There is plenty for hikers on this trail to discover, including the line in the village where two different geological eras meet. Quarries along the route offer a glimpse of the Earth’s interior. In addition to the many insights the route offers into the field of geology, it also provides marvellous views over the mountainous terrain of Sauerland.

The Düdinghausen Geological Trail, which has been certified by the Deutsches Wanderinstitut (German Hiking Institute) as a premium trail, is an extra circuit on the Sauerland Höhenflug (Sauerland High-Flyer), a long-distance hiking trail stretching more than 240 kilometres, which passes through areas such as the Ebbegebirge and Rothaargebirge National Parks. The Sauerland High-Flyer runs almost entirely along mountain ridges, offering a panorama of the surrounding valleys.