Bridge Adventures any Day

Your heart is pounding, your legs are getting soft. Slowly, step by step, you climb higher along the steel arch of the Müngstener Brücke. At the top, at 100 metres, there is a breathtaking view of the Müngsten Bridge Park, the Wupper and the Bergisch city-triangle region. The via ferrata over Germany's highest railway bridge requires courage and a sense of adventure and is unique in Europe. A total of 777 steps lead up to the top. We plucked up our courage and climbed up the Müngstener Brückensteig. Do you dare too?

"You have to cross seven bridges ..." goes an old song that fits Cologne perfectly. Seven bridges connect the two banks of the Rhine here. The most prominent of these is certainly the Hohenzollern Bridge right next to Cologne Cathedral, over which countless trains reach the main railway station every day. It is not only its central location that draws attention to the railway and pedestrian bridge, but also the countless love locks on its railings. However, a walk over to the Deutz side and back is not only worthwhile for lovers. From the steps of the Rheinboulevard, you can enjoy a fantastic panoramic view of Cologne's historic city centre, especially in the evening when the sun sets behind the cathedral.

A circular tour, not just for railway enthusiasts: the 30-kilometre viaduct hiking trail in the Teutoburg Forest region also offers beautiful views and stops worth seeing. For example, it passes the Mariengrotte grotto and a viewing platform above the viaduct, from where the impressive structure can be photographed particularly well. The tour starts and ends in the railway community of Altenbeken in the Paderborn region, where a historic steam locomotive from 1941 is on display in the Eggemuseum. But the highlight of the route is the mighty railway viaduct - the largest stone railway bridge in Europe.

It stretches colourfully across the Rhine-Herne Canal in Oberhausen and impresses not only with its special appearance, but also with its unique name: Slinky Springs to fame. The swinging spiral bridge by artist Tobias Rehberger shines in bright colours at night and is one of the bridge highlights in the Ruhr Area. Around 400 metres long, the structure connects the Kaisergarten, located directly behind the Ludwiggalerie castle in Oberhausen, with the Emscher Island. It is also located directly on the Emscher cycle path, making it an ideal destination for an evening cycle tour.

The meadows of the Rheinpark offer probably the most beautiful bridge panorama in Düsseldorf : here the view sweeps over the Oberkassel Bridge to the Theodor Heuss Bridge. The ideal place for a picnic with a bridge view. But joggers and cyclists also love this place, as the park follows the course of the river for 2.5 kilometres. On summer evenings, there is a unique sunset romance here when the sun sinks next to the Theodor Heuss Bridge.

If you want to cross the 40 metre long Kühhude suspension bridge on the Rothaarsteig, you should definitely be free from giddiness. The suspension bridge on the border between Siegen-Wittgenstein and Sauerland crosses a small valley and is surrounded by beautiful beech forests and quiet stream valleys. For people who find this path too wobbly, there is an alternative around it - and thus at least the chance to get a view of this suspension bridge in the forest.

Haben hier Riesen mit Legosteinen gespielt? Die bunte Brücke über Schwesterstraße regt nicht nur die Fantasie an, sondern motiviert sicher so manche zu einer Radtour durch Wuppertal. Sie ist Teil der Nordbahntrasse, einem Bahntrassenradweg mitten durch diese abwechslungsreiche Stadt an der Wupper. Ihr Schöpfer, Streetart-Künstler Martin Heuwold, hat inzwischen einen zweiten bunten Hingucker gestaltet: Bei der Lego-Brücke 2.0, die Teil der Schwarzbachtrasse ist, leuchten die Bausteine in Regenbogenfarben. 

Many wedding photos have been taken on the baroque bridge in the English landscape garden of Schloss Dyck, which is why it is nicknamed the Wedding Bridge. No wonder, as the atmosphere in the extensive park surrounding the moated castle on the Lower Rhine is bursting with romance and plant splendour. You will discover many an exotic plant as you stroll through the English landscape garden and the "East meets West" Asian show garden.