Auf den Spuren des Blauen Reiters

The cycle tour starts at the Buchheim Museum in Bernried on Lake Starnberg. Here, outstanding works by the "Brücke" artists' association, which included Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Erich Heckel, Max Pechstein and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, are grouped together with complexes of works by Lovis Corinth, Max Beckmann and the second generation of Expressionists.

From Lake Starnberg, the route first takes you through the picturesque Osterseen area, a national geotope at the southern end of Lake Starnberg that enchants visitors with its natural treasures, before reaching Penzberg, the place where painter Heinrich Campendonk worked. An extraordinary collection of the youngest member of the "Blue Rider" can be seen in the Penzberg Museum - Campendonk Collection.

The next stop is Sindelsdorf, where Franz Marc once lived. On a short walk along the Malerweg through Sindelsdorf, you can learn a lot about the artists' association "Der Blaue Reiter".

Further south, you reach Kochel am See. In 2008, a modern exhibition building was added to the Franz Marc Museum there. In addition to the art of the "Blue Rider", the collection includes important works of Brücke Expressionism as well as outstanding works by Paul Klee and important paintings of abstract painting after the Second World War. Marc interpreted the mountains around Kochel, which he regarded as his second home throughout his life, in an expressive way.

A few kilometers further on is Murnau. Kandinsky, Münter, Werefkin and Jawlensky worked here and their works can be admired in the castle museum and the Münterhaus. The castle museum, which dates back to a residential tower from the 13th century, exhibits internationally significant art and literary history from the first third of the 20th century and conveys the special features of the Alpine foothills as well as the local tradition and culture of Murnau, which is closely linked to this outstanding artistic work.

The route follows quiet side roads via Waltersberg, Hofheim, Obersöchering, Egenried and Hohenkasten back to Seeshaupt and on to the starting point in Bernried, through beautiful landscapes and with a magnificent Alpine panorama.

The tour can be extended or shortened depending on your fitness level. If you still feel like it after a hearty snack, you can, for example, cycle the Murnauer Moos on an 18 km round trip.

And to ensure that altitude and long distances are not an obstacle, but child's play, there is a network of e-bike rental stations across the Upper Bavarian Alpine foothills e-bike region.

The entire tour is approx. 92 km long. It is therefore advisable to cycle the route in two or three stages. With one or two overnight stays in one of the towns along the route, you are guaranteed to have enough time for an exciting museum visit.

Along the cycle route, hungry and thirsty cyclists will find rustic, Bavarian inns, some of which are picturesquely situated directly on the lakes, which leave nothing to be desired with their delicacies and invite you to linger.

Bernried, Penzberg, Kochel and Murnau are very easy to reach by train. If you only want to cycle shorter tours, you can easily reach the starting point by train from any of the four towns. The towns are also very easy to reach by train from Munich. So ideal for an extended, sporty and active weekend with cultural highlights.