Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg durch den Wald.

Directly behind the campsite a long hiking trail through the forest begins.

Breakdown of Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg durch den Wald.

• dem: the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
• lang: long
• beginnen: to begin
• durch: through
• den: the; (masculine, accusative)
• der Wald: the forest
• hinter: behind
• direkt: directly
• der Campingplatz: the campsite
• der Wanderweg: the hiking trail

Questions & Answers about Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg durch den Wald.

What exactly does „direkt“ mean here, and is it necessary?

Direkt here means “right / immediately / just” (in a spatial sense).

• hinter dem Campingplatz = behind the campsite
• direkt hinter dem Campingplatz = right behind / immediately behind the campsite

It emphasizes that the hiking trail starts very close to the campsite, not some distance away.

It’s not grammatically necessary. Without it:

• Hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg …
  → grammatically correct, just a bit less precise about how close it is.

Why is it „dem Campingplatz“ and not „den Campingplatz“?

Because of the preposition hinter and the meaning: location, not movement.

• hinter is a two-way preposition (Wechselpräposition).
  
  • It takes dative when describing a location (where something is).
  • It takes accusative when describing movement towards a place (where something is going).

In this sentence:

• Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt …
  • We are talking about where the hiking trail begins (its position), not anything moving behind the campsite.
  • So dative is used: dem Campingplatz (masculine dative singular).

Compare:

• Wir zelten hinter dem Campingplatz.
  → We are camping behind the campsite. (location → dative)

• Wir gehen hinter den Campingplatz.
  → We are walking to (a place) behind the campsite. (movement → accusative)

When do I use dative vs. accusative with „hinter“?

Use this rule of thumb:

• Dative = Wo? (Where?) – static location
• Accusative = Wohin? (To where?) – direction / movement

Examples with hinter:

• Dative (location):

  • Hinter dem Haus ist ein Garten.
    There is a garden behind the house.
  • Der Parkplatz liegt hinter der Kirche.
    The parking lot is behind the church.

• Accusative (movement):

  • Ich gehe hinter das Haus.
    I’m going behind the house.
  • Das Auto fährt hinter die Kirche.
    The car is driving to a place behind the church.

In your sentence, the hiking trail exists/starts at that location → dative: dem Campingplatz.

Why is the word order „Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg …“ and not „Ein langer Wanderweg beginnt direkt hinter dem Campingplatz …“?

Both versions are grammatically correct. The difference is about emphasis and information structure, not grammar.

German main clauses normally have the verb in 2nd position (Verbzweit). The first position (the Vorfeld) can be filled by:

• the subject, or
• some other element (time, place, object, etc.)

In your sentence, the place phrase is put first:

• Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz → 1st position
• beginnt → 2nd position (the finite verb)
• ein langer Wanderweg … → rest of the sentence

This structure emphasizes the location first, almost like:

• “Right behind the campsite, there starts a long hiking trail …”

If you say:

• Ein langer Wanderweg beginnt direkt hinter dem Campingplatz.

you’re putting the trail itself in focus first:

• “A long hiking trail starts right behind the campsite.”

Both are natural; speakers choose based on what they want to highlight first.

Why is it „beginnt“ and not „beginnen“?

Because „beginnt“ is the correctly conjugated form of „beginnen“ for 3rd person singular, present tense.

The subject is:

• ein langer Wanderweg → er (he / it) in grammatical person

So you need:

• er / sie / es beginnt = he / she / it begins

Some forms of beginnen (present tense):

• ich beginne
• du beginnst
• er/sie/es beginnt
• wir beginnen
• ihr beginnt
• sie/Sie beginnen

Why is it „ein langer Wanderweg“ and not „ein langen Wanderweg“ or „ein lange Wanderweg“?

This is about adjective endings.

• Wanderweg is masculine: der Wanderweg
• In this sentence, ein langer Wanderweg is the subject, so it’s nominative singular masculine.
• With ein
  • masculine nominative, the adjective takes the ending -er:

Patterns (indefinite article, nominative):

• ein langer Hund (masc.)
• eine lange Straße (fem.)
• ein langes Buch (neut.)

So:

• ein langer Wanderweg = correct (masc. nominative)
• ein langen Wanderweg = would be accusative; wrong here
• ein lange Wanderweg = wrong ending

What does „Wanderweg“ mean exactly, and how is it different from just „Weg“?

• Weg = path / way / road (very general)
• wandern = to hike

Wanderweg is a compound noun:

• Wander- (from wandern = to hike)
• -weg (path)

So Wanderweg means “hiking trail”: a path specifically meant or suitable for hiking / walking in nature, often signposted.

Compare:

• Weg – any path/way
• Wanderweg – hiking trail
• Pfad – narrow path / track (often more natural, less developed)
• Spazierweg – path for leisurely walks (Spaziergang = stroll)

What is the gender and article of „Campingplatz“, „Wanderweg“, and „Wald“?

All three are masculine nouns:

• der Campingplatz
  
  • dative singular: dem Campingplatz
• der Wanderweg
  
  • nominative singular: ein langer Wanderweg
• der Wald
  
  • accusative singular: den Wald (as in durch den Wald)

In German, most nouns ending in „-platz“ and „-weg“ are masculine, and Wald is also masculine by lexical convention. You just have to learn these genders with the nouns:

• der Campingplatz
• der Wanderweg
• der Wald

Why is it „durch den Wald“ and not „durch dem Wald“?

Because durch is a preposition that always takes the accusative case.

• durch = through

So you must use:

• durch den Wald (accusative masculine singular)

Not:

• ✗ durch dem Wald (wrong – dative)

Other prepositions that always take the accusative include:

• für, ohne, gegen, um, durch, bis, entlang (FOG U-BE is a common mnemonic)

What’s the nuance of „Wald“? Is it more like “forest” or “woods” in English?

Wald generally corresponds to both “forest” and “woods”. It means:

• a relatively large area with trees and undergrowth.

Subtle differences:

• Forest (English) sometimes sounds larger, more official or technical.
• Woods often feels a bit smaller or more informal.

In German, Wald covers both:

• durch den Wald → through the forest / through the woods

If it’s very large and dense, Germans might also say Urwald (primeval forest), but Wald is the standard word.

Could I say „Gleich hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt …“ instead of „Direkt hinter …“?

Yes, you can. Both are natural, but there’s a small nuance:

• direkt hinter = right behind / immediately behind [focus on spatial closeness]
• gleich hinter = often also right/just behind, but gleich can feel a bit more colloquial and can sometimes have a slight “soon / right after” flavor in other contexts.

In this spatial use, they’re practically synonyms:

• Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg …
• Gleich hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg …

Both mean that the path starts very close behind the campsite.

Can the phrase „durch den Wald“ appear earlier in the sentence, or does it have to be at the end?

German word order is quite flexible. You can move durch den Wald, but you must keep the verb in 2nd position.

Your original:

• Direkt hinter dem Campingplatz beginnt ein langer Wanderweg durch den Wald.

Possible alternatives:

1. Durch den Wald beginnt direkt hinter dem Campingplatz ein langer Wanderweg.
   → Grammatically OK, but sounds a bit marked/poetic.

2. Ein langer Wanderweg durch den Wald beginnt direkt hinter dem Campingplatz.
   → Very natural; now the trail through the forest is kept together as one noun phrase.

In everyday language, speakers often keep the whole noun phrase together:

• ein langer Wanderweg durch den Wald
  and then move that chunk as a whole if needed.

The version you were given is very natural and typical.