Eberbach-Baden Germany Baden-Wurttemberg

Germany

The Neckar takes its time along this stretch of its course. Between Heidelberg and Heilbronn, the river winds through the wooded hills of the Odenwald, passes through locks, and skirts spurs crowned with castles, the Burgenstrasse, the Castle Road, seen from the water. Nestled in one of these bends, Eberbach lines up its tightly packed rooftops at the foot of forested slopes. River ships dock at the town's pontoon, just steps from the old centre: passengers step ashore literally at the threshold of the old town.

Four Towers and Half-Timbered Lanes

The old, pedestrian-only core is easily explored in under an hour. Four well-preserved medieval towers mark the former line of the town walls, sections of which still stand between the houses; the thirteenth-century Powder Tower is the most imposing of them. The lanes are lined with carefully maintained half-timbered houses, among them the Palmsches Haus from 1610, with its overhanging upper storeys, a favourite backdrop for photos. On the market square, the town hall stands alongside the former collegiate church, and neighbourhood shops, bakeries, butchers, wine merchants, are a reminder that Eberbach has remained a real, living small town, not a stage set for visitors.

The Wild Boar, Emblem and Sweet Treats

The town's name translates roughly as "wild boar brook," and the animal is everywhere: on the coat of arms, cast in bronze on the streets, shaped in pastry in shop windows. Local confectioners take up the theme with a sense of humour, and the taverns serve hearty regional fare where Odenwald game, spätzle, and Neckar wines top the menu. A break at a café on the square is a must, watching the townsfolk go by, the very rhythm of the town, peaceful and steady like the river itself.

Ruins in the Forest and a Dormant Volcano

Above the rooftops, the Burgberg hill hides among its trees the remains of the Eberbach fortress: three successive castles, built between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries and later abandoned, of which walls and sections of the enclosure survive. A trail climbs up from the last houses; the effort is rewarded with glimpses out over the valley. More ambitious walkers can aim for the Katzenbuckel, the highest point in the Odenwald at 626 metres: this extinct volcano, topped with an observation tower, looks out over a sea of forest. The region belongs to the Neckartal-Odenwald Nature Park, crisscrossed with marked trails that make the town an ideal base camp for hikers.

The approach by river is itself part of the pleasure: the locks are passed through at a leisurely pace, herons and cormorants fish in the eddies, and every bend reveals another perched castle, romantic Zwingenberg, and Hirschhorn with its fortified town, are just a few kilometres downstream. On market days, the square comes alive with the products of the Odenwald: forest honey, smoked cured meats, and fruit from the valley's orchards.

Depending on How Long the Stop Lasts

• One hour: the maze of lanes, the old gates, and the half-timbered houses.
• Two to three hours: add the climb to the Burgberg ruins or a longer food break.
• Half a day: a hike to the Katzenbuckel or a bike ride along the riverbanks.

The Valley Closes Gently Again

As the ship continues on its way from lock to lock, the little town's towers disappear behind a curtain of trees and the valley turns wild again. This stop has nothing spectacular about it in the way of great capitals; it offers something else instead, the Germany of fairy tales, of deep forests, wild boars, and ruined castles, seen at a walker's pace. And curiously, it's often this very stop that Neckar passengers bring up first at dinner.