The starting point chosen in this route description is the Geilenkirchen information point (Town Hall, Markt 9, 52511 Geilenkirchen).
From the starting point Geilenkirchen information point (Markt 9, 52511 Geilenkirchen), you proceed to junction (KP) 08, through the Wurm valley to KP 05 and KP 17 near Himmerich. KP 97 is located on the outskirts of Brachelen and KP 98 by the Rur river. Cycling along the river, you reach the Hückelhoven information point (Haus Sodekamp-Dohmen, Breitestraße 3, 41836 Hückelhoven-Hilfarth). KP 99 is on the other side of the Rur.
You reach KP 16 on the outskirts of Oberbruch after crossing the Rur on a small bridge. The path now leads through the Ruraue floodplain to KP 22 at Orsbeck and further via Unterbruch to KP 11 at the bus station in Heinsberg. From here, cycling towards KP 13, you reach the Heinsberg information point at the boathouse.
The route leads back to KP 11 at the Heinsberg bus station and then to KP 20. In the open fields lies KP 12. Behind Laffeld is KP 19, which directs you to KP 18 behind Uetterath. In Tripsrath stands KP 04, which leads you back to KP 08 in the Wurm valley. From there, you cycle to KP 01 in the Geilenkirchen town centre.
Highlights along the route:
From the Geilenkirchen information point (Town Hall, Markt 9, 52511 Geilenkirchen) it is a short distance to KP 01. Very close by is Haus Basten. The hall and adjoining rooms in the building, with furnishings from the Baroque to the Gründerzeit period, showcase the living culture of a wealthy bourgeois class of that time. Since 1986, the building has been used by the city of Geilenkirchen as a public meeting place. Today it houses, among other things, a museum room and the registry office's wedding room. Concerts, readings, exhibitions, and other cultural events are regularly held in these rooms.
You soon reach Trips Castle. The castle dating back to the 15th century is located on the edge of Geilenkirchen and is one of the largest and most impressive fortifications of the Lower Rhine. The complex consists of a mighty defensive tower, a two-storey manor house, and is surrounded by moats.
The route continues to KP 08 and along the river to KP 05. In Randerath, on a raised motte dating from around the year 900, is a castle first documented in 1157. It was the ancestral seat of the noble family of Randerath until the dukes of Jülich took over and fortified the castle strongly in 1392. The town and the castle were destroyed in a war in 1542. Later, the site was used for a glassworks and even later for a pottery. In the 18th century, the remains of the medieval buildings were gradually demolished due to structural instability. The two-storey core building with a hipped roof of the brick complex dates from the 14th century, while the other buildings are from 1762. The property is privately owned and not accessible.
Behind the small village of Himmerich lies KP 17 and the path leads through a narrow woodland along the Diebsgraben stream to Brachelen and KP 97.
On the way to this junction, you cycle past the idyllic Kapbusch natural lake bathing area, located between the districts of Hilfarth and Brachelen. It features 25,000 sqm of lawn for sunbathing, fine white sand along the shore area, approx. 10,000 sqm of swimming area including a swimming island, surrounded by small forest patches. There is a beach volleyball court and a playground with climbing frame for younger visitors. A kiosk/snack bar is available; camping and barbecuing are prohibited. Current opening hours can be found on the website of the city's swimming pool (HÜBAD) in Hückelhoven: https://huebad.de/. Tickets can be purchased online (preferred).
Now the open Rur valley lies ahead as you proceed to KP 98 directly on the river. The Rur river springs from the High Fens-Eifel Nature Park in the Belgian province of Liège and flows for over 164.5 km through Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands, where it flows into the Meuse at Roermond. Almost the entire river course is accompanied by the RurUfer-Radweg, a varied and signposted cycle route.
Just before junction 99 lies the Hückelhoven information point (Haus Sodekamp-Dohmen, Breitestraße 3, 41836 Hückelhoven-Hilfarth). Here, you can take a short break and possibly watch canoeists or rafting boats setting off on a tour on the Rur.
From KP 99, the route follows the river course past a former gravel pit, now the Adolfosee lake, to KP 16 at Oberbruch. Cycling through the Ruraue floodplain, you reach KP 22 near Orsbeck.
On July 27, 1206, two armies vying for the German imperial throne met in the marshy Rur lowlands near Wassenberg. Otto's army was decisively defeated, but he managed to retreat wounded to Wassenberg castle and then fled to Cologne. Philip became king but was soon the victim of an assassination attempt. Otto was crowned German king in 1208 and emperor in 1209.
600 years later, the marshy Rur lowlands again served as a battlefield. In 1794, the French revolutionary armies and troops of Prussia and Austria fought here. French brigade general Bernadotte forced a crossing over the river at Ratheim with his troops marching upstream on the Rur. He spent the night at Wassenberg Castle — which thus hosted the later king of Sweden and Norway for one night. The outcome of the war was the incorporation of the left Lower Rhine into the French Republic.
Along the B 221 road, the path now leads you to KP 11 through Unterbruch to Heinsberg and, cycling towards KP 13, you reach the Heinsberg information point (boathouse at Lago Laprello, Fritz Bauer-Straße, 52525 Heinsberg).
Back to KP 11 at the bus station. On the way, take some time to visit the BEGAS HAUS – Museum for Art and Regional History Heinsberg (https://begas-haus.de ) or hike up to the Selfkant Cathedral and the remains of the former Heinsberg castle on the motte hills. The route continues to KP 20 and then out into the open fields to KP 12. From here, you have a Wassenberger Horst.
Through Laffeld to KP 19, further to KP 18 and KP 04 in Tripsrath. At KP 08, you reach the Wurm river. The approx. 53-kilometre-long river winds from its source area in Aachen via Würselen and Herzogenrath to the Heinsberg region before flowing into the Rur near Kempen. Along its course, you often encounter impressive manor houses, built directly on the Wurm as moated castles.
Just beyond KP 08, the route passes again by Trips Castle/fortress to KP 01 in the town centre of Geilenkirchen — your starting point.
