The Devil's Canyon near Irrel
near Irrel, Rheinland-Pfalz (Deutschland)
Viewed 8349 times, downloaded 247 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
The Devil’s Canyon (Teufelsschlucht) is a great hiking destination because of its narrow canyons, deep cracks, precipitous walls and bizarre rock formations.
This trail is equivalent to tour 24 of the Rother Eifel Wanderführer (3rd edition, 2000). Much has changed since it was published. Perhaps more recent editions have done away with some puzzles. In the digital age, ‘left at the telephone booth’ is no longer a good description. Even the trail itself has seen its best. The roof of the shelter at waypoint 10 rests on the ground, and forks and crossing are not always marked.
Notwithstanding, this is a hugely recommended trip, which is perhaps a little more demanding than the standard visit to the Teufelsschlucht that begins at the new Tourist and Information center. But then you may savor the quiet, move away from the hustle and bustle, and get an expanded view into this unique rock landscape. If you can afford it, try the trail on any other day than on a summer weekend,
The Devil’s Canyon proper is between waypoints 14 and 16.
The Canyon is not at the level of the river Prüm, but considerably higher up. That is why you should calculate about 370 meters each in cumulative ascent and descent.
Some more details:
When leaving the parking, it is worthwhile to make a short excursion to the bridge across the Prüm and to follow the somewhat indistinct path for a while. Eventually, the path is blocked and you will have to use a concrete path higher up. This path is still nice to walk; it follows the Prüm upstream until Prümzurlay.
Later on, the trail follows a formerly-well-maintained path below impressive rock formations. Nowadays, the path is in bad repair, and not always easy to find. Steps are often slippery, have moved off, or are covered in soil and leaves. Take sturdy boots.
Worthwhile is a short sidetrip to the viewpoint 15, the only place from which to see Irrel on this hike.
The path through the Devil’s Canyon proper is well secured and safe, but may require some acrobatics and can be very narrow.
The bridge across the Prüm is a highlight in itself.
This trail is equivalent to tour 24 of the Rother Eifel Wanderführer (3rd edition, 2000). Much has changed since it was published. Perhaps more recent editions have done away with some puzzles. In the digital age, ‘left at the telephone booth’ is no longer a good description. Even the trail itself has seen its best. The roof of the shelter at waypoint 10 rests on the ground, and forks and crossing are not always marked.
Notwithstanding, this is a hugely recommended trip, which is perhaps a little more demanding than the standard visit to the Teufelsschlucht that begins at the new Tourist and Information center. But then you may savor the quiet, move away from the hustle and bustle, and get an expanded view into this unique rock landscape. If you can afford it, try the trail on any other day than on a summer weekend,
The Devil’s Canyon proper is between waypoints 14 and 16.
The Canyon is not at the level of the river Prüm, but considerably higher up. That is why you should calculate about 370 meters each in cumulative ascent and descent.
Some more details:
When leaving the parking, it is worthwhile to make a short excursion to the bridge across the Prüm and to follow the somewhat indistinct path for a while. Eventually, the path is blocked and you will have to use a concrete path higher up. This path is still nice to walk; it follows the Prüm upstream until Prümzurlay.
Later on, the trail follows a formerly-well-maintained path below impressive rock formations. Nowadays, the path is in bad repair, and not always easy to find. Steps are often slippery, have moved off, or are covered in soil and leaves. Take sturdy boots.
Worthwhile is a short sidetrip to the viewpoint 15, the only place from which to see Irrel on this hike.
The path through the Devil’s Canyon proper is well secured and safe, but may require some acrobatics and can be very narrow.
The bridge across the Prüm is a highlight in itself.
Waypoints
Intersection
572 ft
TS 01-Gabel
Bridge
805 ft
TS 02-Brücke
Intersection
580 ft
TS 03-Gabel
Bridge
574 ft
TS 05-Brücke
Intersection
584 ft
TS 06-Gabel
Intersection
809 ft
TS 08-Kreuzung
Intersection
901 ft
TS 11-Gabel
Intersection
933 ft
TS 12-Gabel
Intersection
979 ft
TS 14-Kreuzung
Intersection
1,010 ft
TS 16-Gabel
Intersection
984 ft
TS 17-Gabel
Intersection
872 ft
TS 18-Gabel
Intersection
825 ft
TS 19-Gabel
Mountain hut
718 ft
TS 20-Hütte Waldesruh
Intersection
685 ft
TS 21-Gabel
Comments (3)
You can add a comment or review this trail
I have followed this trail View more
Information
Easy to follow
Scenery
Moderate
I am new to the whole hiking thing and this was definetely a great one to start with. A friend and I did this a couple of weeks ago and it was beautiful. Lots of stairs and hills both up and down but surprisingly not too difficulty for a beginner and totally worth it. It was hard to figure out where to park but we ended up going to the Naturparkzentrum Teufelsschlucht, which, turns out, is where you are suppose to start. Once you park there will be a train entrance. Just follow that and then it will take you to the welcome center where you can purchase a map for 10 cents. They have other trail options if you want to do a smaller hike but the 5.8km that we did was great. Happy hiking!
I have followed this trail verified View more
Information
Easy to follow
Scenery
Difficult
Hele mooie route
wel moeilijk te volgen op sommige punten
I have followed this trail verified View more
Information
Easy to follow
Scenery
Easy
Nice hike but the start of this hike is closed due to the floods in july 2021, the nice bridge is also gone :( . I followed the road for a while instead of the marked path so it went fine. But at the end, to cross the river you’ll need to improvise: or go through Irrel and use the bridge there (what I did) or take off your walking shoes and cross the river (at your own risk). Today there was little water in the river and so you could cross it at some points.