BR62 From Mount Sainte-Odile to the Haut-Koenigsbourg castle

To the southwest of Strasbourg, the Barr region unfurls its hills, vineyards and thriving villages. From Barr, the wine capital of the Bas-Rhin, the route leads to Mont Sainte-Odile, home to Alsace's most important pilgrimage site, on a rocky promontory of sheer pink sandstone cliffs. Below, the village of Le Hohwald welcomes you in the middle of a vast clearing. The ascent of the Kreuzweg pass opens onto the dynamic, open landscapes of the Vallée de Villé. You'll then spend a short time in the Val d'Argent, before starting your ascent to the Château du Haut-Koenigsbourg, a veritable sentinel of the Alsace Plain, rising to an altitude of almost 755 m. The return journey takes you gently through the vineyards of Kintzheim and Châtenois, before making another incursion into the Vallée de Villé via Thanvillé and its magnificent Château de Plaine on the old Salt Road. You'll make a final stop at Hohwarth and the Colline du Saint-Gilles, before returning to the wine-growing foothills towards Itterswiller, a commune famous for its impressive flower display. A stopover in Andlau will allow you to discover its Romanesque abbey church and its excellent heritage interpretation center “Les Ateliers de la Seigneurie”, before returning to the starting point.