The longest “unmarked” section on the NST was previously the beautiful trail through the St. Wendler Land, spanning from Saarschleife to the trailhead of Pfälzer Weinsteig, covering a total of 148 km. As you all know, and as stated in the description of the NST’s stories, the trail deliberately avoided having its own separate route and guidance. This decision was made to enable the trail to be realized in an uncomplicated manner. The NST relies on existing long-distance, main, and cross-country hiking trails established by recognized hiking associations throughout its entire length.
The goal of the NST is to combine as many marked trail segments as possible, and not, as some critics claim, to forcefully achieve a trail length of over 3000 km. When the NST started in 2020, only 387.7 km out of 3382 km were unmarked, which represents 11.46% of the trail.
Starting from August 16, 2021, I will be hiking a new route for the North South Trail. This change will add 142 km to the main route, resulting in a total length of 3513 km for the NST. However, the Half Way Point will remain at its current location as a tradition. The percentage of unmarked trail sections will be reduced to 7.7%, which I consider a very good value. I would like to express my gratitude to Esha for working on this trail segment.
With this logical change in the trail’s route, hikers will also reach the first stage of the Pfälzer Weinsteig and encounter fantastic highlights like the Donnersberg with its famous Adlerbogen.
If you would like to follow my journey, you can do so with the Find Penguins app. I would be delighted to have you join me.

LG Soulboy