Odenbach (Glan)

The Odenbach is a 22.7 km orographically right bank tributary of the Glan in the counties of Kaiserslautern and Kusel in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate.

Course
The Odenbach rises about 8 km north of Kaiserslautern in the North Palatine Uplands near the hamlet of Sonnenhof. It flows – mainly in a north-northwesterly direction – through the municipalities of Schneckenhausen, Schallodenbach and Niederkirchen in the county of Kaiserslautern and through Hefersweiler, Reipoltskirchen, Ginsweiler and Adenbach in the county of Kusel, before emptying into the Glan in the eponymous village of Odenbach after a distance of just under 23 kilometres.

Catchment
The catchment of the Odenbach covers an area of 85.956 km2 and consist of 50% arable land, 25.6% pasture, 20.2% woodland and 4.2% settlements.

Tributaries
The most important tributary of the Odenbach is the Nußbach (Odenbach), which alone drains 21% of the catchment of the Odenbach. The other streams have a catchment of less than 10 km2.

The following table shows the tributaries of the Odenbach from source to mouth, as listed by the Water Management Authority of Rhineland-Palatinate. The table gives the name, whether it is a left or right tributary, its length, its catchment area,, the location of its confluence, the height of its confluence and its waterbody number.

Transport routes
The L 201 runs through the Odenbach valley.

Leisure pursuits
The Odenbach Valley Cycleway runs through the Odenbach valley for 31.5 km. It runs from Otterberg via Niederkirchen to Odenbach

Sights
The best known sights in the valley are the two water castles:


 * Odenbach Castle, at the confluence of the river with the Glan, was built in the 2nd half of the 12th century by the counts of Veldenz and blown up in 1683 by troops of the French king, Louis XIV. The ruins include the renovated remains of the bergfried, which is built of impressive rusticated ashlar blocks and, as the Weiherturm, has become the symbol of the village of Odenbach.