Castle Ruin Ehrenfels
4 meter thick and 20 meter high walls with two towers, each 33 meter high are the remains of this impressive castle ruin...
Built in the 10/11th century Ehrenfels was an important toll station in the 13th and 14th century in connection with the "Mäuseturm" (mouse tower) in the rhine.
In the 30-years-war Ehrenfels was sieged and occupied quite often.
During the "Pfälzische Erbfolgekrieg" it was destroyed in 1689.
Later the prussians got the castle ruin and today it is the property of the federal state Hesse.

Great viewpoint and picnic place "Rossel" between Rüdesheim and Assmannshausen.
This artificial ruin was built by "Graf Ostein" in 1774 as a part of a romantic theme park.
Walking up the stairs in the round tower you reach a small platform, from where you have a fantastic panoramic view down into the "Binger Loch" with the "Mouse tower" and castle ruin "Ehrenfels". Unfortunately the Rossel is open and accessible quite seldom...

Rüdesheim - Lorch
Distance: ca. 21 km
Time: 4-6 hours
Altitude difference about 660 m
Highlights in Ruedesheim: Drosselgasse, Rheingauer Weinmuseum Brömser Burg, cable car to the Niederwalddenkmal, christmasmarket, Abbey St. Hildegard, Asbach Wine Distillery with Visitors Center, midieval torture museum, Siegfrieds Mechanisches Musikkabinett ...
From Rüdesheim we follow the paths through the vineyards up to the Niederwalddenkmal (monument of Germania) with its Adlerwarte (view point). If you prefer you can go by cable car to the monument...