Handschuster-Weg

We walk from the Schusterhof via Selbitztalstraße and the Selbitzbrücke bridge to Froschgrün to the park and there, after the retirement home, along Griesbacher Weg towards the end of the village. At the last houses on the right, turn briefly to the right and then follow a natural path in the forest up quite steeply to Steinreuth (612 m) with the Dr. Köhl stone, inaugurated on 18 June 1950, and the rest area.

The stone commemorates the district doctor and founder of the Frankenwaldverein e.V. (30.10.1898) Dr. Oskar Köhl. He led the Frankenwaldverein from 1898 until his death in 1928. The small observation tower named after him and inaugurated on 3 November 1929 previously stood on this idyllic open space until shortly after the end of the war.

We now continue on a comfortable forest path on the hill (at a crossroads about 50 m to the right: beautiful view) in a straight direction until we reach the road. We follow it only briefly uphill to the left and turn right into the forest. On a natural forest path, we cross a small dip (pay attention to the markings!) to the Franconian Mountain Trail and follow it to the left back to the road. We walk along the road to the right for about 50 m and turn right again onto a cul-de-sac into the forest. With a view of the first houses of Rothleiten, we leave the little road and continue straight ahead on a forest path, but soon turn left and walk on a pleasant forest path to the Rothleiten-Neuhaus road. We cross the road almost straight ahead and, keeping to the left, we soon reach the Rothleiten hiking home of the Frankenwaldverein Berg local group on a path.

At the home, we leave the Franconian Mountain Trail and continue to the right. After the nearby forest, we reach a large meadow surrounded by woodland. We continue straight ahead and then walk longer in the forest with tree stands of different ages with some changes of direction until we reach the edge of the forest. Now a pleasant meadow path leads us straight ahead across a wide meadow area in the charming valley landscape of the Krebsbach stream with well-tended ponds until we reach the edge of the forest. There we turn left and walk along a field path over the Krebsbach and its bottom to the road. We do not have to walk on the road to the right towards Berg, but can use the grassy path along the road at the later row of trees to the left of the road.

Immediately at the start of the village, we turn right through the new development area to the sports field and on to the cemetery chapel and Berg church. The center of the Berger Winkel with its surrounding countryside offers a charming alternation of hills and valleys, fields, pastures, meadows, small stands of deciduous trees, wetlands and dense spruce forests. We walk through the beautiful grounds of the fortress-like church and through the historic town hall down the steps to the main street. We cross it and walk straight on to the end of the village and, after a short left turn, turn right again and leave the high village (640 m above sea level) through the fields with a wonderful distant view of the Thuringian part of the Franconian Forest to the underpass of the A 9.

Shortly afterwards, we walk a short distance to the right at the edge of the forest, turn sharp left and walk through a sparse high forest and downhill through the meadow to Gottsmannsgrün with the castle brewery.

When 27 tin mines were operating in nearby Büchig in 1560, the von Dobeneck family was granted the exclusive right to sell beer.

When we come across one of several castle buildings, we turn right and walk along the castle and park grounds to the district road and turn right along it to the village sign in the direction of Lamitz. There we turn left onto a land consolidation path, then take a field path to the heights and enjoy the beautiful view back to the Fichtelgebirge with the Schneeberg. The route now leads downhill in the forest on pleasant paths through beautiful stands of trees. At the end of the forest: View of Venzka in Thuringia, Hirschberg Castle and the nearby Weißenbach valley. We walk downhill on a natural path, cross the road and pass the von Knoch villa and the Protestant leisure center.

We walk down the former driveway (to the villa), which is reinforced by a retaining wall on the slope side, to Untertiefengrün. We walk past the cow mill on the bridge over the Saale (Bavarian-Thuringian border) to Hirschberg, the bridge from Thuringia to Franconia.

The mill on the border between Thuringia and Bavaria can look back on a long history, as a slogan on a building facing the road proclaims: "Sechshundertfünfzig Jahre stund die Mühle hier im kühlen Grund. God helped in sunshine and adversity. He continues to give grain and bread." An old ruin of a wall, artfully crafted from field stones, bears witness to the high level of architecture of earlier generations. A customs barrier erected in 1810 only existed until 1834.