Nettersheim

The Urft valley was the first major obstacle for travellers journeying from Cologne to Trier in Roman times. Up to that point, the route to the Eifel mountains was largely straight. Now, however, they had to cross the Urft. Once they reached the river, there were various ways to cross it: the Roman road crossed the Urft and its steep valley slopes at several points.

Therefore, the Roman road divided into different branches. Travellers could choose which branch to take depending on whether they were travelling by loaded cart, on horseback or on foot. The type of vehicle, the load being carried and the seasonal conditions also played a role in the choice of route.

It can be assumed that the branch of the road that runs straight from north to south here crossed the river via a bridge. Another branch of the road, running further west, split again shortly before the northern slope of the Urft Valley. These two roads probably crossed the Urft at two fords. On the other side of the Urft, one branch led into the Eichter Valley, while further downstream a route ran past what is now the town of Urft. In the south, near Schmidtheim, the various branches of the road then converged again.