The Kölnpfad is a 160 km long circular hiking trail around Cologne that was opened in 2008 and is divided into stages. The route of the Cologne Path was determined in 2007 and the route markings were completed in the summer of 2008. Hiking sign is a white circle on a black background, the sign for circular hiking trails around places in North Rhine-Westphalia. In some places you can find the Cologne Path logo designed by the Cologne Eifel Association, a rectangular marking in the Cologne colors of red and white with the black cathedral towers in the red field. This marking is not an official symbol of the German hiking trail network, and it is not placed consistently along the route. The hiking trail circles the city in eleven stages ranging from 9 to 22 km in length. With two exceptions, the route runs within the Cologne city limits. In the south on the right bank of the Rhine it leads a few kilometers over the Niederkassel area, and in the north-east on the right bank of the Rhine a stage runs as a detour through the Bergisch Gladbach urban area.
An ultramarathon event takes place nearly every year on the Kölnpfad route. The route will be extended by around 10 kilometers to the start/finish. The current record on this variant is just over 19 hours.
