The Erlenbach is a 34.2 km long, left tributary of the

Michelsbach The Michelsbach is a tributary of the Rhine in the German region of South Palatinate. The Michelsbach's nominal start is the confluence of the Erlenbach and Otterbach in Leimersheim, but the Otterbach is officially not counted within its catc ...

in the German state of

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

Course

The Erlenbach rises in the South Palatine

Wasgau The Wasgau (german: Wasgau, french: Vasgovie) is a Franco- German hill range in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate and the French departments of Bas-Rhin and Moselle. It is formed from the southern part of the Palatine Forest and the nor ...

region, the southern part of the Palatine Forest, in the municipality of Birkenhördt. It flows eastwards and leaves the Palatine Forest near

Bad Bergzabern Bad Bergzabern () is a municipality in the Südliche Weinstraße district, on the German Wine Route in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated near the border with France, on the south-eastern edge of the Palatinate forest, approximately ...

, where it breaks through the Forest's its eastern perimeter, the

Haardt The Haardt () is a range of wooded, sandstone hills in the state of Rhineland Palatinate in southwestern Germany. The range is some long and lies within the Palatinate Forest (''Pfälzerwald''). Its highest point is the Kalmit, near Maikammer M ...

. Next it flows through

Kapellen-Drusweiler Kapellen-Drusweiler is a municipality in Südliche Weinstraße Südliche Weinstraße ( pfl, Siedlischi Woischdrooß; en, "Southern Wine Route") is a district (''Kreis'') in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are ...

Oberhausen Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European ...

Barbelroth Barbelroth is a municipality in the Südliche Weinstraße district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of th ...

and Winden, before forming the boundary between

Kandel Kandel () is a town in the Germersheim district of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France and approximately 18 km north-west of Karlsruhe, and 15 km south-east of Landau. Kandel is twinned with the small Lancashire ...

and Erlenbach, then Hatzenbühl. After it passes

Rheinzabern Rheinzabern is a small town in the south-east of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany near the Rhine river. Currently, Rheinzabern, that belongs to the District of Germersheim has approx. 5000 inhabitants living on an area of 12,75 square kilometres. ...

and

Neupotz Neupotz is a municipality in the district of Germersheim, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after ...

, it unites in Leimersheim with the Otterbach, coming from the right, to empty into the

. The Michelsbach consists of several former Old Rhine loops and discharges into the Rhine itself at Sondernheim after running parallel to the Rhine for 10 km.

References

{{Reflist Rivers of Rhineland-Palatinate South Palatinate Anterior Palatinate Rivers and lakes of the Palatinate Forest Rivers of Germany