Elisabethpfad: Pilgrimage Report from Eisenach to Marburg

In 2020, Jakob Engel walked from Görlitz to Trier in 45 walking days. He set off from Görlitz in August in midsummer heat and arrived in Trier on 2 October, in autumn and in the rain. Over his 1,010 kilometres he walked four official German Ways of St James one after the other – which is why his pilgrimage report is also divided into four parts:

• Part 1: Via Regia – from Görlitz to Eisenach
• Part 2: Elisabethpfad – you are reading this part right now
• Part 3: Lahn-Camino – from Marburg to Lahnstein
• Part 4: Mosel-Camino – from Lahnstein to Trier

From Eisenach across the Green Belt

After seeing Eisenach and taking a rest, I walked the Elisabethpfad to Marburg. For long stretches the Elisabethpfad is identical to the Way of St James, but it is a little longer and, according to the guidebook, more scenic.

On the Elisabethpfad, too, I came across German history. On the first stage I twice crossed the former border strip, today’s Green Belt (Grünes Band) – the nature corridor along the old inner-German border, and recent German history you can touch. The former border between East and West Germany is marked by a memorial that I think is very well done. The couple I stayed with in Ifta, in the former restricted zone, told me a little about this chapter of our history. Thank you very much!

Memorial at the former inner-German border

A tip for travelling light

Things I realised along the way that I didn’t need, or no longer needed – such as the guidebook for a section once I had finished it – I put in an envelope and posted home. That way my backpack always stayed as light as possible.

First autumn fog in Hesse

After midsummer temperatures on the Via Regia in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia, the first feeling of autumn arrived in Hesse. Just past the state border I had my first foggy morning, at 6 degrees. It was a very atmospheric morning!

Low mountains and hospitality

The landscape of the Elisabethpfad was very different from the Via Regia: low mountain ranges with wide valleys, hills and forest. After the wide open spaces and flat fields of the Via Regia, I thoroughly enjoyed walking through hills and valleys again.

In two small villages along the way, the landladies of my guesthouses told me straight away that I wouldn’t find anything to eat there in the evening – there was no shop, no restaurant and no snack bar. These kind women then offered to cook for me. It was simply a lovely gesture, and delicious on top of that. Hospitality was usually given pride of place along my route, but here there was an extra cherry on top. Ifta and Reichenbach were those two lovely villages! In Reichenbach every pilgrim really should try the ice cream from my hosts’ ice-cream van – very, very much recommended.

Bridge over the Werra

Water in the village churches and a clear head

In terms of landscape, the Elisabethpfad was the most beautiful part of my Way of St James for me – and I say that even though I found every section very beautiful. What stayed with me in particular were the many small churches where the parishes provided free water for pilgrims. That small gesture made me happy again and again.

Homberg (Efze)

The longer I was on the road, the more I enjoyed walking alone. My head became clearer and clearer, and I could perceive myself, my path and my surroundings much more intensely. Pilgrim days are very “simple”, and that is exactly what makes them wonderful: get up in the morning, have breakfast, get ready, set off, arrive, eat something, sleep – and the next day could begin. When I was back home, I first had to get used to a different everyday life again. It took a few weeks before I felt I had really arrived.

Arriving in Marburg

At the end of the trail lies Marburg, a real gem of a town. I had taken a small student flat in a 400-year-old house and stayed there for three nights. For me, Marburg was the most beautiful town along the whole way. I will be back!

St Elizabeth’s Church (Elisabethkirche) in Marburg, the end of the Elisabethpfad

Marburg’s old town

The Landgrave’s Castle (Landgrafenschloss) in Marburg

My conclusion

My verdict on the Elisabethpfad:

I love the low mountains! And it was the right decision to walk right across Germany. The long time on my Way of St James played an important role for me. Looking back, I’m grateful that I wasn’t able to walk the Coastal Way in Spain.

My stops on the Elisabethpfad

1. Ifta
2. Hoheneiche
3. Reichenbach
4. Malsfeld
5. Homberg (Efze)
6. Frielendorf
7. Treysa
8. Stadtallendorf
9. Marburg

The story continues with Part 3: Lahn-Camino – from Marburg to Lahnstein.

You’ll find the route itself, with stages, map and accommodation, in Camino Ninja: Elisabethpfad 2 (Eisenach – Marburg).