The trail follows an ancient trade route on which donkey caravans used to transport salt, thus giving rise to the name.

It may have connected Celtic circular ramparts, found for example at Bürgstadt and Miltenberg to similar places near the Kinzig, such as the Alteburg [de].

The route's name derives from the caravans of donkeys used in the Middle Ages to transport salt from Orb to Miltenberg, where it was either loaded on ships or carried on by land.

Near the Wiesbüttmoor [de], it reaches the Bavarian border and follows it west before turning south again, entering the Landkreis Aschaffenburg.

The trail passes a hunting lodge used by Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria, Schloss Luitpoldshöhe [de], and snakes southwards and southwest, entering the Landkreis Miltenberg.