Berghülen offers two different ways to discover the Hülen: an approximately two-hour walking trail and a 31-kilometer cycling route. There is also the Protestant parish church, with its layered building history. When planning your trip, you can weigh up landscape, activity, and architecture.
To the Hülen on Foot or by Bike
The Hülen walking trail is approximately 7 kilometers long and takes about two hours. This circular route crosses fields and passes through hedgerow landscapes, going by three Hülen. Its length and approximate duration give you a concrete timeframe for this excursion; trail conditions may vary. So check the current conditions before setting out.
The Hülen cycling route is 31 kilometers long, connects six Hülen, and starts at the Auhalle Berghülen. This makes it clearly different from the walking trail in both distance and the number of Hülen it connects. While the Hülen walking trail is described as a circular route with an approximate duration, the cycling route covers a longer distance. The two routes can therefore be compared according to how you wish to explore, without treating their different details as equivalent.
You can also factor public transport into your plans: Berghülen is in the Donau-Iller Transport Association (DING) area. The association coordinates and organizes local public transport in the region. Check the current connections for your specific journey.
Church-Building History in Berghülen
The Protestant parish church in Berghülen is a single-nave church with a narrower, net-vaulted choir and pointed-arch tracery windows. It dates from 1504. The wall paintings are dated to 1510, the tower to 1576, and the furnishings are from the 18th century. These dates refer to different parts and aspects of the church, making its history readable beyond the building’s construction date.
Its former dedication is also part of the church’s history: the church was once dedicated to Saint Lawrence. Together with the choir, windows, and wall paintings, the architecture offers several specific starting points for understanding its cultural history. The dates help distinguish the building, paintings, tower, and furnishings, rather than attributing them to a single building phase.
The Swabian Alb Plateau and the Alb-Donau District
The Hülen are the only bodies of surface water on the Swabian Alb Plateau. This places the three Hülen on the walking trail and the six on the cycling route within a broader landscape. For your trip planning, you can consider both individual stretches of the routes and the wider landscape.
The wider destination of the Alb-Donau District offers other hiking options with different distances. Its 20 “Ice Age Trails” circular routes are 6 to 14 kilometers long and suitable for day hikes. There are also the family-friendly “Ice Age Traces,” ranging from 1 to 6 kilometers, as well as the Reflection Trail for multi-day hikes. These options differ in length and type of outing; they are in the Alb-Donau District and should not be conflated with the two Hülen trails.
Another cultural highlight in the Alb-Donau District is Hohle Fels near Schelklingen. The cave is a UNESCO World Heritage site and the discovery site of the “Venus of Hohle Fels” and the “Vulture Bone Flute.” Both finds are about 42,500 years old. The broader region thus encompasses not only landscapes and hiking routes but also evidence of the Stone Age. When making your choices, it is useful to keep the different scales in mind: Berghülen’s Hülen trails and parish church describe specific features of the town, while the hiking and cultural attractions mentioned above relate to the Alb-Donau District.
Discover more destinations: Munderkingen, Holzkirch, Allmendingen, Ulm, Langenau, Staig, Setzingen, Lonsee.
For the wider travel overview: Alb-Donau District.
