The Ligist Celtic trails
The "Ligister Keltenwege" begin at the market square in Ligist and lead us in a south-easterly direction, past the formerly important Roob hammer mill, over a traffic light-controlled road crossing in the direction of Dietenberg. After crossing the road, the trail continues along the Ligistbach stream before turning sharp left after the small Hunesbach bridge.
We continue along the path for a short distance, past the dog waste disposal area, before turning left again to begin the ascent to the old Celtic settlement site, the Dietenberg.
The next 500 m of the trail are the steepest on the entire route, but a good half of it leads through shady deciduous forest. The steep ascent ends at a small quarry with interesting rock formations that is only used for local purposes.
We continue our relaxing walk through a derelict farm before the path becomes moderately steep again and we reach the vineyard region. The hike through the vineyards is enjoyable with a beautiful view of Ligist. After crossing the vineyards, the path leads us through forest again, interrupted by views of the "Teufelstein" (Devil's Stone) on the Ligist bypass and the Ligistberg with the 805 m high Wartenstein.
After a short ascent, we reach the summit of the Dietenberg with its Celtic excavations and a magnificent view over the Ligister valley basin. The mountain, which was first mentioned in 1066, probably got its name from its former lord of the castle, a Dieter.
The highest point of the hike has now been reached. We take a rest and enjoy the "Greitbauer" wine tavern just below the summit.
We walk downhill through vineyards, past the Kürzl inn and a Celtic house built in the original style, along the road for approx. 1 km. We then leave the road on the left at the start of the "Schwarzwald" (the original name for pure coniferous forest) and soon reach the junction of the shorter Celtic trail to Ligist on a forest path.
We reach the village on this route in around ½ hour.
The longer route of the Celtic Trail now leads us further through the Black Forest. After 10 minutes, the hiking trail joins Hallersdorfer Straße. We follow it to the village of Grabenwarth, where we can take a break at Gasthaus Höfer or at the beautiful village fountain.
In the small chapel opposite the fountain there is an altar that once stood in the "Lubgast" castle, which is now in ruins. The area around Ligist belonged to Eppenstein in the 12th century and was owned by the Wildon family of servants, the "Lubgasters", in the 13th century.
The Keltenweg now takes us along the road towards Steinberg (highway) and leaves it on the right by turning into the forest. Via the so-called "Eisbach" we reach the "Herlwirt" junction after about 15 minutes. Continuing along the Eisbachweg, we soon cross the Hunesbach and after a short ascent we reach another important junction. The "Ligister Rundwanderweg" continues to the left and after approx. 10 minutes we reach the junction to the "Sch(m)ankerlwegen".
The Celtic trail continues to the right, past the Sailer riding stables and a few farmsteads. After a short while, we come to a crossroads in the forest, where the Celtic trail branches off to the left. Walking through a beautiful old hollow path, we soon reach the Ligister valley floor. After crossing the Ligist bypass road at the old fruit press, after another 10 minutes we are back at the starting point of our hike, the market square in Ligist.