Nachtsheim – Hiking and Local Stories

Discover Nachtsheim on a hike or through its special stories: the Strühmannspettje leads to viewpoints, historic sites, and the Heinzelmännchens Cave. In the village, a rock grotto, a Pietà, and a pilgrimage tell different sides of local tradition. You can therefore choose how to balance outdoor activity and cultural discoveries during your stay.

The Strühmannspettje: a circular trail with views and history

The Nachtsheim Strühmannspettje is a moderately challenging circular hiking trail around the local municipality. The route is 11.7 kilometers long, or around 12 kilometers, and the hike is listed as taking about three and a half hours. Along the way, the trail passes historic and natural attractions as well as viewpoints. These include views across the Mimbach Valley from reclining benches on the slope above the Heinzelmännchens Cave.

The route passes through the Mimbach Valley to the Heinzelmännchens Cave. Along the Virneburg boundary, it continues to the “Im Kesselchen” Grotto of Our Lady and onward to the Roman quarry and Roman burial mounds. This gives the trail several points of interest: you can experience the landscape, the views, and the historic sites as different aspects of the same hike. If you are considering Nachtsheim as a destination because of this circular route, you can take the trail into account as an important part of your planned stay when choosing where to spend your holiday and which holiday apartment to book.

For navigation, download the GPX track and trail map in advance, as the signage is incomplete in some sections. The community hall is the recommended starting point. There is ample parking there, provided the hall is not being used for another purpose. The trail is suitable only to a limited extent for people with health-related or mobility impairments. Its length, estimated duration, and this limitation can help you decide how to fit the route into your travel plans.

Grotto, church, and Roman traces

The small rock grotto in Nachtsheim’s “Kesselchen” was built in 1937. Josef, Peter, and Aloys Gerharz, together with Peter Thome, built it, setting a small altar stone with a figure of the Virgin Mary into the rock. During a later renovation, steps and a place to sit were added. The grotto is also a stop on the Strühmannspettje, linking a specific religious tradition with the hike.

A Pietà stands in the parish church of St. Stephen: the sculptural group shows Jesus in the arms of Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows, after he has been taken down from the cross. After suffering extensive damage, it had been kept in the church cellar for more than 30 years. It was restored and put back on display in 2002. Its story makes the Pietà a cultural-historical point of interest in its own right, alongside the outdoor stops.

The Roman past is also present in the area around Nachtsheim. The Roman burial ground near Nachtsheim was laid out as a cemetery garden with burial mounds south of the Koblenz–Liège Roman road. A Roman roadside settlement was located along this road. On the Strühmannspettje, the trail continues to the Roman burial mounds and the Roman quarry, so you can also take the route’s historical dimension into account when choosing what to focus on during your hike.

A pilgrimage and a local legend

Every May, the parish community of St. Stephen in Nachtsheim makes a pilgrimage to Maria Martental. The first pilgrimage on foot took place in May 1945, after around 200 members of the community had signed a vow. The tradition is passed on to younger generations. For visitors interested in local traditions still being practiced, this recurring custom complements the older evidence from Roman times and the church.

Another story leads to Nachtsheim: according to local legend, the Heinzelmännchen fled from Cologne and found a new home, among other places, in Nachtsheim in the Eifel. The Heinzelmännchens Cave is also a stop on the Strühmannspettje. For those who enjoy combining hiking with stories, it offers another distinctive connection, without equating the legend with the historic sites.

More local pages: Lind, Ochtendung, Monreal, Weißenthurm, Welschenbach, Nörtershausen, Brodenbach and Acht.

For the broader travel overview: Mayen-Koblenz.