This fantastic motorcycle tour covers approx. 260 km on winding side roads through the southern Black Forest. The starting point is the Hotel Grüner Baum in Todtnau and leads from there in a south-westerly direction to Kandern. The route then returns via Todtmoos, with an optional detour via the Schluchsee and Feldberg.
As the highest low mountain range in Germany, the Black Forest is one of the most popular and probably most beautiful motorcycle destinations in Germany. A trip to the Black Forest is also ideal for a long weekend. In our case, we arrived on Saturday from the Stuttgart area, took a long ride through the Black Forest on Sunday and then returned on Monday. I set Kirchheim (Teck) as the start and finish. Kirchheim is easy to reach via the A8. Many of the routes are deliberately on very small roads, and large parts of the tour are deliberately planned as a leisure tour.
Approach via the Dontautal
Approach
Distance: 280 kilometers
GPX data and download: kurv.gr/MAtWk
We have planned the route via the Swabian Alb and through the Danube valley. At the beginning, we take the direct route into the Danube valley, leaving the Lauter valley to the left, which is usually overcrowded at the weekend. Shortly before the Danube valley, we pass through one of my favorite stretches, the Schmeietal (SS1). There’s a nice place here to take a break and dip your feet in the river. If you like it “curvier”, it’s best to plan your route via Stetten am kalten Markt, the climb into the Danube valley is highly recommended.


I like to avoid cycling through the Danube valley from Thiergarten to Beuron, as it always takes a while. I prefer to leave the Danube valley and take the beautiful but narrow road to Beuron. From Beuron, I ride past the Knopfmacherfelsen rock towards Lake Constance and then parallel to the Swiss border into the Black Forest. The area around Todtmoos is a highlight for me every time and it almost gives me alpine feelings.


We then swing the last few bends to our destination for the day, the Vitalhotel Grüner Baum in Todtnau. We celebrate our arrival in style with a cold wheat dish on the hotel terrace. This is followed by a culinary highlight in the form of a burger – the perfect end to a motorcycle tour. The food was really excellent and of high quality. For example, the meat for the burger came from grazing cattle from the Black Forest – these are the kind of little things that I always notice in a very positive way. The hotel is located in the heart of the Black Forest, so you can plan and ride tours to the most beautiful parts of the Black Forest from here.


Day tour in the Black Forest on small roads
Day tour
Distance: 260 kilometers
GPX data and download: kurv.gr/3fXdH
As we had planned the day trip for Sundays, I took special care to choose smaller side routes when possible. Nevertheless, there really are a hell of a lot of delicious bends, combined with beautiful views and great places to take a break. One look at the map is enough to make you almost dizzy with all the bends.
As hot temperatures are forecast for the day, we start our bikes a little earlier and are already on the road at around 8am. The cool morning air and the empty roads are a dream as we wind our way through the carousel of bends towards Wiedner Eck (SS2). With a sonorous growl, the boxer engine accelerates towards our first stop at SS5. Wow: what a fantastic view as far as the Alps and all around us the beautiful nature of the Black Forest.


As the tour progresses, we notice the beautiful mix of roads in the Black Forest again and again. Winding valleys and climbs alternate with small side roads. There are hardly any towns worth mentioning. At the southernmost point of the route, we pass through the only larger town, Wehr. Here there are various opportunities for a short break, such as an ice cream parlor or restaurant.


Freshly fortified, we then head back towards Todtnau. There are two optional detours on the way back: SS13 and SS14 as well as SS17. Depending on your mood, these waypoints can also be removed to create a shorter tour. SS17 leads over the Feldberg and past the Schluchsee. The Schluchsee is ideal for a swim on the way back. If the tour is too short for you, you could also ride from Wehr into the Swiss Alps and extend the tour accordingly.
Return journey through the northern Black Forest
Return journey
Distance: 290 kilometers
GPX data and download: kurv.gr/33HMc
For the return trip the next day, we take advantage of the perfect location of our hotel, on the Notschrei Pass, to ride directly along the formerSchauinsland mountain race track. The Schauinsland is closed to motorcyclists at weekends from April to October, so please bear this in mind when planning your trip. I recommend riding down the Schauinsland and back up again as planned on the route and not riding through Freiburg. The Schauinsland is much more fun uphill.


We then ride to the Kandel motorcycle meeting point (SS2). It’s worth pausing here briefly to enjoy the view before continuing into the Elz valley. In the Elz valley, we use the main road to cross the valley as quickly as possible. We then circle through the northern Black Forest on small side roads and some well-known highlights such as the Ruhestein. Shortly before Stuttgart, we take the autobahn to avoid riding the last few meters through the Stuttgart suburbs.
The Black Forest is always worth a visit. We were pleasantly surprised by the condition of most of the roads, it was very easy to ride – even without an enduro. Although Stuttgart is actually not far from the Black Forest, we often prefer to go to the Swabian Forest or the Swabian Alb, even though the Black Forest has so many beautiful places to offer. For us, it’s clear that we’ll be going there more often now.
Photos: @bumschakalaka_photography