A cycle tour with beautiful panoramic views from the slagheaps to the central radrevier.ruhr.
They are the mountains of the Ruhr region: the slagheaps! Created from the overburden
of hard coal mining and the remains of the steel industry, they were
dead space for a long time. But they have been renaturalised and many of them have been crowned by artists with
marking landmarks to become small landmarks of the Ruhr region. Wide panoramic views and unusual photo motifs - a slag heap is simply part of a visit to the Ruhr region. The 39-kilometre RevierRoute "Haldenglück" takes you to several slagheaps.
The starting point
As a route tour, this RevierRoute starts directly at the main railway station in Essen. This makes the tour ideally connected to long-distance and regional transport. There is a cycle station directly at the main station. By car, it is recommended to park a little further outside the city centre or to start the tour at the UNESCO World Heritage Zollverein.
Start of the tour
From the main station, the tour first leads directly through Essen city centre in a northerly direction. From junction 57 in the Univiertel, the route then runs along smaller city streets and past an allotment garden colony to the UNESCO World Heritage Site Zollverein.
The Zollverein Coal Mine in Essen
Over 12,000 tonnes of hard coal were unearthed here every day during the coal mine's heyday. What many people don't know is that about the same amount of rock was extracted in addition. The coal was separated from the rock in the coal washing plant. Today the Ruhr Museum is located in the coal washing plant. Here you can learn a lot about the history of the Ruhr region - including the slagheaps. An extremely worthwhile visit at the start of the tour.
To the first slag heap
The first slag heap is located directly on the Zollverein site, but it cannot be climbed by bike. The RevierRoute then leads eastwards away from the colliery grounds via the Zollvereinweg and later via the Kray-Wanner railway. Cyclists pass the Zollverein 3/7/10 and Bonifacius pits.
The stairway to heaven on the Rheinelbe slagheap
The first slagheap to be climbed on this RevierRoute is the Rheinelbe slagheap. During the ascent, cyclists pass exhibits of the sculpture forest by artist Herman Prigann. The Himmelstreppe (Stairway to Heaven) on the top of the slag heap, often called the Himmelsleiter (Ladder to Heaven), is the main work of art. From the top, a beautiful panorama opens up over the western Ruhr area.
The Rheinelbe slag heap is one of the few burning slag heaps. Temperatures of up to 400 degrees Celsius have been measured in it, which can be caused by high pressure, oxygen and heat build-up and are regularly checked for safety. Of course, this is not dangerous for cyclists; on the surface you hardly notice anything.
The Pluto slagheap
The tour continues via the Kray-Wanner railway to the popular cyclists' meeting place Erzbahnbude. From here the RevierRoute now runs northwards along the Erzbahntrasse. Shortly before the Rhine-Herne Canal, a short detour to the Pluto slag heap branches off to the right. The viewing platform is quickly reached. The panoramic view is of several colliery towers, from the nearby Pluto colliery to the Unser Fritz and Ewald collieries in the north and the Consol colliery in the west.
The largest slagheap landscape in Europe
At the end of the ore railway line, you cross the Rhine-Herne Canal over the beautiful "Grimberger Sichel" bridge. From here, the RevierRoute leads through the Emscherbruch to the Ewald colliery. Two great slagheaps await cyclists here, which together form the Hoheward Landscape Park, the largest slagheap landscape in Europe: the Hoppenbruch slagheap and the Hoheward slagheap.
A paradise for enduro bikers
The Hoppenbruch slagheap is best known for its legal network of enduro tours for mountain bikers. But the ascent to the top of the slag heap, which is crowned with a modern windmill, is also worthwhile on a trekking bike. A beautiful view of the neighbouring Hoheward slagheap reveals the grandeur of the slagheap landscape.
The Sundial and the Horizon Observatory
It is probably the queen of the slagheaps: the mighty Hoheward slagheap with its two slagheap plateaus, on which a sundial and the striking arches of the Horizon Observatory stand. The arches, which can be seen from almost anywhere in the Ruhr area, unfortunately have to be supported by steel struts due to a construction problem. Nevertheless, the Hoheward slag heap is a majestic place with an extraordinary panoramic view that far exceeds the strain of the energy-sapping ascent.
The final stage
From the Hoheward slag heap, the tour leads along the Allee des Wandels and another railway line to Recklinghausen. From the station it is a good return journey to the starting point at Essen main station.
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