"Höhensteig" Klingenthal Circuit

Klingenthal

Symbolic landmarks of the music and winter sports town of Klingenthal are the town hall and the round church "Zum Friedefürsten", which are located above the market square. From the town centre, it is only a few steps to the start of the circular trail: the course begins by crossing Auerbacher Straße (B283) and then joins Dietrich-Bonhoeffer-Straße. Here the course leaves the road and leads via a meadow path up to the Körnerberg. Meadows, small groups of trees of beech, birch and maple alternate generously and a look back opens up a panorama with views of the city: in the valley the rows of houses that follow the foot of the mountains along the traffic routes on the ridges are replaced by wide expanses of spruce forest.

Alternating between ascents and descents, you reach the Kammweg via the Kamerun, Dreihöf, Gösselberg and Pudelmützhäuser. The route leads high above where Saxony and Bohemia join hands: On the left, the steep slope towards the city, on the right, undulating land that flows into the neighbouring Czech village of Bublava/Schwaderbach a few kilometres away.

The circular route, however, already has the next height in sight, the 936-metre-high Aschberg. The border road and the Aschberg road lead up the steep mountain, past cosy residential houses with typical wooden shacks and inviting inns. Before continuing along the Höhensteig, it is worth taking a short detour to the "Otto-Hermann-Böhm" observation tower on the summit of the Aschberg. Meanwhile, the Höhensteig follows the Hirschlecken and Glashütter trails to the district of Mühlleithen, which has gained international fame as the starting point of numerous sports competitions. Thus, the circular trail also leads over the cross-country skiing bridge, past the areas that serve as a ski stadium in winter. On the neighbouring summer toboggan run, a speedy toboggan ride is possible even in the snow-free time of the year.

The trail now turns south, back towards Klingenthal. The trail passes the lower raft pond and follows the raft ditch, where heavy logs were once safely moved down into the valley by a system of water ditches, wet-footed. A branch leads into the Steinbach valley, where granite and phyllite meet on a wildly romantic nature trail - the "Radiumquelle". However, the circular trail follows the ridge and finally reaches the site of the former Aschberg ski jump. Next destinations are the Mittelberg with its viewing opportunities and the Aboretum in Forstwinkel, which is well worth seeing. Another highlight along the way is the Vogtland Arena. The large ski jump (HS140) is considered one of the most modern large ski jumps in the world and is the venue for important sporting and cultural events in summer and winter. At the same time, the ski jump is a symbol of the more than 100-year history of Nordic skiing in Klingenthal.

The circular route continues over the Alberthöhe where the view of the town with its illustrious name opens up. Bohemian exiles once brought the knowledge of violin making to the valley surrounded by mountains and turned it into the "sounding valley" - "Klingenthal", whose more than 150-year tradition of making hand-pulled instruments gave the town a worldwide reputation. Passing the zoo on the Richard-Wagner-Höhe, the trail then turns sharp right down the slope to the open-air swimming pool and the Dürrenbach campsite.

After the Meiselteich pond, turn back towards the town and walk past the residential area "An der Huth" down into the Klausenbach valley. The steep Knockweg path requires more stamina before you reach the hammer place in Zwota via the Herrenberg. A detour to the Zwota harmonica museum next to the church is a "must". Over 1000 instruments from the Klingenthal and Zwota production of accordions and harmonicas as well as electronic keyboard instruments are exhibited there.From the centre of Zwota, the route leads steeply uphill to the foothills of the Schönecker Landstufe via the Alter Weg and the Schieferbergstraße, the historic connection to Kottenheide. The trail offers views of the Glasbach valley and the Zwota valley - all the way to Klingenthal. After a stretch through a mixed spruce and beech forest, you reach the "Reith", a plateau once used for agriculture.

Via the Sammerberg as another vantage point, the trail then first descends into the valley of the Zechenbach, an old mining area, and up the opposite slope to the Schlosserberg, which is reached at an altitude of 721 metres. From there you have a view of the upper Zwota valley and the valley of the Raunerbach as well as the Hoher Brand (805 metres). Passing the houses of the mountain settlement, which was inaugurated in 1937, the trail descends into the valley and past the Zwotatal holiday hotel climbs steeply up the northern slope of the Hoher Brand - until it reaches the forest road coming from the Gopplasgrüner Höhe. From there, the trail leads to the left to the Erlbacher Jagdhütte (hunting lodge), whose vestibule can be used for a rest. The ridge trail leading from there in the direction of the Wegspinne was a section of the running course in the decision for the relay championship at the German Ski Championships in 1929.At the Wegspinne, the route turns left into the valley of the Hüttenbach, the upper part of which has been a nature reserve since 1961. Past two reservoirs from the 1930s, the route continues to the forest houses, a settlement originally built for forest workers in 1875. From there you have another impressive view of the Zwota valley. Shortly before reaching the centre of Zwota again, the trail passes quarries that have long been closed down and where roofing slate was mined between 1820 and 1857.

The trail continues along the cemetery on the northern slope of the "Döhlerwald" with fascinating town views to the rest area near the Czech border. From there you can review the mountain panorama of the already hiked "Höhensteig" with an impressive view. Finally, you will reach the town centre again via a steep downhill meadow path. If you don't want to end the day yet, you should decide to visit the nearby music and winter sports museum. There you can learn all about the centuries-old tradition of musical instrument making and Klingenthal's 100-year history of skiing. - The "Höhensteig" circular trail Klingenthal offers hikers not only its natural beauty and scenic beauty but also an unforgettable cultural experience with a view of the city's most beautiful leisure facilities.