It’s funny being a Florida girl obsessed with snow. I cannot get enough of it. I’d consider myself a snow chaser. Snowfall has been sporadic in the Ramstein area the last few years. I kept a list of towns I was interested in visiting when there was snow fall. I used the app AccuWeather with its wintercast feature.
I had to be flexible depending on the weather & what was going on with family life. There are a few webcam sites I would check the morning of.
To view the video, click here, or the photo above.
Mosel town webcams
Hunsrück National Park webcam
Google Map - for all locations on this blog post & video
Karlstal Gorge near Trippstadt
Is a great first trip for the Kaiserslautern area. The first time we hiked this, we used the Komoot app & did a 7 mile hike with the gorge included. If just want to do the gorge for scenery or a quick hike with little ones there is parking very close to the gorge area.
Hunsrück/Morbach
I found out about "the forest" in one of the FB pages I follow. If there is snow coming anywhere close to the Ramstein area, Hunsrück is a good bet for snow. It's a vast national park/forest area. You can make it a destination or stop on your way to/from Bernkastle-Kues or Traben-Trarbach. It's about 45 minutes from the base.
ABOVE: Photo Set #1 - Look for Parkplatz am Idarwald on the corresponding Google Map
There are opportunities to hike, sled, ice skate & take photos. Please Check the website of the Wintersportzentrum Erbeskopf (Heritage Head Winter Sports Center) prior to going to see if they are open. It is dependent upon the snowfall. You can find hikes on the Kamoot app, which is what I did, or on their website. There is a digital hiking tour planner. During non-winter times, e-bike rentals are available. The website also notes what to put in your navigation system as the default does not bring you to the correct place.
ABOVE: Photo set #2 - Look for Heilquelle Sauerbrunnen on the corresponding Google Map
There are many areas of the park & actual parking lots. When I started visiting the area, I may have turned down one of the unpaved roads to take photos & gotten stuck - I drive an SUV with good tires & still had to call a tow truck. Don't be like me.
Webcam
Sports Center website
E-bike rental
Hiking planner
Hunsrück-Hochwald National Park
Google Map
The first time I visited Traben-Trarbach was during COVID closures so I just took photos. It is a beautiful town on the Mosel River. I returned later in the Fall when things were open. I visited town & hiked the castle ruins of Grevenburg. Just a note about the castle, there are signs everywhere about hiking at your own risk. In my opinion, it's not kid friendly.
Burg Lichtenberg
Burg Lichtenberg is a closer day trip only 25 minutes away from Ramstein. I've featured this well preserved castle ruin in a previous video for the USO. Click here to see the video & blog post.
Monschau
I didn’t make it to Monschau during a traditional winter snow, but I made it during the 2022 snow dump in April. At 2 hours & 45 minutes it's not close - but it's doable as a day trip. Before I made my trip I called the tourism office to make sure there was snow & roads into town were accessible.
This is one of my favorite towns to wander, take photos, shop & eat. If you've been to some of the local bazaars, this is where the Monschau mustard is from. Go visit the store, tour the factory & have some of the soup! Also don't miss hiking up to get the panoramic view of town.
I have a previous video I did on Monschau. Click here to view.
Monschau Tourism Office
Mon-Joie: my favorite artisan store in Monschau
Burg Grafenstein
Burg Grafenstein is a castle ruin about 40 minutes south of Ramstein. The hike was a steep switchback trail to the castle on a hill. Although The trail was icy I saw many families hiking together. You can walk outside/inside ruins 360 degrees. The is tower available to climb. There was parking at the base of the trail head. There are no food or toilet facilities at this castle.
Kirchheimbolanden
If you've taken A63 toward Frankfurt you may, or may not, have noticed the brown information sign about Kirchheimbolanden. I've driven past it many times & one of my good friends told me there was snow there when I was planning a snow photography day. It's about 40 minutes from Ramstein. I got some interesting photos as this was another snow dump in April. I have photos of snow and blossoms blooming!
This would be a nice stop as an addition to any trips you have in the area. There are lots of places to have a meal or snack. There's also a great gift store with some regional merchandise.
Kirchheimbolanden’s official city website
Do you have any favorite day trips you’ve taken to enjoy the snow? Join the chat on the Facebook group & let us know.