RuT2 near Mandern, between the Ruwer and Burkelsbach Rivers

From our starting point at the parking lot by the wastewater treatment plant, our trail takes us directly along meadows that are particularly colorful and rich in biodiversity. In March, some of the meadows in the Ruweraue between Mandern and Hentern offer a botanical treat: yellow daffodils. This rare and protected plant species thrives only in areas where little or no fertilizer is used.
We continue past the barbecue hut and discover spruce stands right in the stream valley. Since managing the wet meadows was very labor-intensive and therefore of little interest to farmers, they were often planted with conifers. However, these dense conifer stands in the stream valley act as barriers for many animal species, such as butterflies and birds, and restrict their habitat. For this reason, spruce plantations have already been removed from areas included in the waterway project.

The trail continues along the Ruwer, and here we can see that riparian buffers have already been created in Mandern to preserve habitats for animals and plants. Dragonflies and marsh marigolds have found a new home. We turn right, reach the lookout point after about 2.2 km, and are treated to a beautiful view of the Keller Mulde valley. We continue along the K71 toward the barbecue hut between Mandern and Waldweiler. We cross the Burkelsbach. Narrow culverts under the trail along the stream are insurmountable obstacles for fish and small animals—especially when migrating upstream. Here, narrow culverts beneath the trails have been removed, so that the stream once again has a continuous bed of stones, gravel, and sand, and aquatic animals can now pass freely.

We reach the village of Mandern and walk back along the church to our starting point.

Sturdy shoes and comfortable, weather-appropriate clothing are recommended.

The yellow daffodil blooms here in March. In Germany, it is found in only a very few locations in the Hunsrück and the Eifel. Its population in the Ruwe Valley is therefore particularly worthy of protection.

From the A1: Take the Reinsfeld exit toward Kell am See; follow the B407 to the Mandern turnoff; in Mandern, turn left at the church toward Zerf; at the edge of town, turn right toward the wastewater treatment plant and the barbecue hut.

From Trier: Drive through Zerf toward Mandern; in Mandern, turn left toward the wastewater treatment plant.

Parking lot at the wastewater treatment plant

The nature trail is funded as part of the Ruwer Waterways Project through the federal Riparian Zone Program, with support from the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The goal is to preserve and develop the Ruwer River and its tributaries, along with their floodplains, over a stretch of approximately 186 km as a near-natural water and floodplain landscape within the Saar-Hunsrück Nature Park.

A total of 6 themed hiking trails (Rut1–Rut6) are part of this project, offering hikers a vivid and informative way to experience the Ruwer River and its various uses up close.