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Best Lake Hikes near Essen

We track 8 routes that match this search near Essen. They average 61.2 km and 1,347 m (4,419 ft) of ascent, with the longest running to 257 km.

That is 5 percent of the 151 routes we map near Essen.

Lake routes give you a natural halfway point, somewhere to swim in summer, and the calmest reflections of the whole week if you get there before the wind picks up. The mix is broad: 1 are rated easy and 7 are hard or harder, so there is something here whether you have two hours or a full day.

Trails

Expert

X1 Arnheim - Lippstadt

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
257 km
/ 160 mi
Elevation gain
5,651 m
Typical duration
69 hr
  • Lake
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Expert

Nordic Walking Land schafft

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
46.9 km
/ 29.1 mi
Elevation gain
1,031 m
Typical duration
12 hr
  • Lake
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Expert

X17 Dorsten-Deuten - Dülmen

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
33.2 km
/ 20.6 mi
Elevation gain
730 m
Typical duration
8 hr 33 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Expert

X6 Recklinghausen <=> Maria-Veen

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
37.7 km
/ 23.4 mi
Elevation gain
830 m
Typical duration
9 hr 47 min
  • Lake
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route
Expert

(W) Rund um Witten

North Rhine-Westphalia · Germany

Distance
57.3 km
/ 35.6 mi
Elevation gain
1,260 m
Typical duration
15 hr
  • Lake
  • Mountain
  • Waymarked route

The shortlist, side by side

The ten highest scoring routes on this page, so you can compare effort before opening any of them.

Distance, ascent, walking time and difficulty for the top routes
RouteDistanceAscentTimeDifficultyBest season
X1 Arnheim - LippstadtNorth Rhine-Westphalia257 km5,651 m69 hrExpertApril to October
Nordic Walking Land schafftNorth Rhine-Westphalia46.9 km1,031 m12 hrExpertApril to October
X17 Dorsten-Deuten - DülmenNorth Rhine-Westphalia33.2 km730 m8 hr 33 minExpertApril to October
X5 Recklinghausen Hbf - Dülmen BfNorth Rhine-Westphalia35.4 km779 m9 hr 9 minExpertApril to October
X6 Recklinghausen <=> Maria-VeenNorth Rhine-Westphalia37.7 km830 m9 hr 47 minExpertApril to October
Haltern-Lippramsdorf - Sythen X20North Rhine-Westphalia19.5 km429 m4 hr 50 minHardApril to October
(W) Rund um WittenNorth Rhine-Westphalia57.3 km1,260 m15 hrExpertApril to October
Heide-Wald-Route (Haltern Westruper Heide)North Rhine-Westphalia3.0 km66 m43 minEasyApril to October

If you only have time for one, start with X1 Arnheim - Lippstadt, Nordic Walking Land schafft, X5 Recklinghausen Hbf - Dülmen Bf. Those are the routes people come back to. Every route on this page links through to a full guide with the map, elevation profile, seasonal advice and what to bring.

Frequently asked questions

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