Wildnis Trail, Fernwanderweg
The Wildnis Trail is an approximately 85 kilometer long-distance path through Eifel National Park in North Rhine-Westphalia, divided into four stages of 18 to 25 kilometers each. It runs from Monschau-Höfen in the south to Zerkall in the north, passing through beech forests, alongside streams and meadows, and crossing the Urft reservoir.
The area served as a military training ground until 2005 and has since begun returning to wilderness, while the national park was established in 2004 to allow nature to take its own course. The trail connects historic locations such as the monastery Mariawald and abandoned settlements that tell the story of human habitation in the region.
The trail passes through areas shaped by generations of inhabitants who once worked and lived here, now returning to wilderness. Visitors can encounter abandoned settlements like Wollseifen and the monastery Mariawald, which reveal how people adapted to this landscape over time.
The path is well marked with wildcat symbols and can be split flexibly into four stages or shorter sections depending on preference. Visitors should avoid walking during storms or bad weather due to falling branches, and must stay on marked paths as unexploded ordnance from the area's military past remains in the ground.
The area is undergoing a unique rewilding process where nature gradually reclaims land after decades of military use, with wilderness intended to develop organically over several decades. Hikers can observe firsthand how forests grow and animals like deer and foxes reclaim the landscape.
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