Auto-Pédestre Larochette

7km* – Intermediate – 2.5 hours.
Fabulous 360° views of the Château de Larochette, including from the incredible “Himmelberg” viewpoint.
Park and start on Chemin Z.A. Zinnen.
By bus: Larochette, Spuerkeess/Gare routière.
Toilets and plenty of cafés available near starting point.

*The map and description show a slightly shorter variant of the official AP Larochette trail; the original version can be found here and is 8.5km long.

Setting out on this trail, I had one objective in mind: to enjoy the sunset over Larochette from the Himmelberg viewpoint. However, some quick maths at the starting point made me realise I’d misjudged it. Sunset would beat us to the viewpoint. No worries: a small shortcut trims about 1.5 km from the route and leads straight from the car park up to the Verluerekascht viewpoint. A nice warm-up with postcard views over the town and its castle.

The Auto-Pédestre Larochette is a loop trail in the purest sense. Not only does it start and finish in the same place, but it does a full 360° around the castle in a wonderfully spidery way. Heading away from the castle at Verluerekascht (look back through the trees from time to time for more superb castle views!) the trail brushes the huge Birkelt campsite, before pivoting toward a small waterfall and a well-placed picnic table.

Having almost left Larochette by this point, the path suddenly remembers who it is and marches straight back into it. Then it veers left into a surprisingly dark alleyway and climbs steadily towards the castle gates. There’s another picnic table here if you wish to linger, but – with the sun dangerously low by now – we couldn’t afford that luxury and headed down once more into a typical Mullerthal wonderland of mixed forest, imposing rock formations and undulating paths. The buzz of the town falls away the deeper you delve into this wild patch of mixed forest, before another sharp bend drops you on a course for the town once again.

Crossing the busy road near the town’s Delhaize supermarket, the trail heads uphill again, past a cemetery (some lucky graves have a superb view of the castle!) and into the forest for one final time. By now the sun was sinking fast, so we hurried over a carpet of freshly-fallen leaves towards our goal. Were we too late? No. In the end, we had timed it perfectly.

From the Himmelberg Viewpoint at dusk on this November day, Larochette felt suspended between seasons. The air was still and rapidly cooling, touched by the faint rise of chimney smoke curling into the evening sky. Soft peach, pink and orange light gathered above the château, washing the rooftops in a gentle glow as the town’s lights began to flicker on below and a murmuration of starlings swooped overhead, looking for a nighttime roosting spot. From the hills surrounding the town, the forest dropped away in a sweep of gold, some lucky leaves catching the last brightness of the day, holding the colour of autumn for just a little longer before night – and winter – settled in.

From Himmelberg, there is still the small matter of descending back down into Larochette, so we reluctantly left our beautiful perch and used what little light was left to navigate our way back to the starting point. By the time we reached the town centre, the sun had fully disappeared and the late-dusk silhouettes of the Larochette skyline were our guide.

I’ve been to Larochette many times; I hadn’t planned on being impressed, but this trail genuinely caught me off guard. It showed me new vistas of this well-known town, new angles of that imposing fortress and new, wilder, corners of the Mullerthal forest. In my opinion, this is the best circular trail I’ve found around Larochette, and the Himmelberg viewpoint at sunset is worth the trip on its own.