On this new circular route, we invite you to also discover the South Harz landscape with one of the most remarkable Harz monasteries – the former Cistercian monastery Walkenried. This circular route is the first of future "monastery hiking trails" to explore and hike to our monasteries located off the main "Harz Monastery Hiking Trail" (116 km between Goslar and Halberstadt - 7 stages). The approximately 23 km long circular route leads, among others, via the Karst hiking trail and Kaiserweg from Walkenried via Ellrich to Woffleben and back again. The tour can also be walked from station to station.
You start at the Gothic monastery complex Walkenried, the oldest part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Harz. A visit to the Cistercian Museum and the World Heritage Information Center is recommended. Circle the monastery complex to the footbridge over the Wieda River. On the Magister Eckstorm Trail, follow along the Wieda River until the junction with the Harz Border Trail, which you continue along the former inner-German border. At the junction to Zorge, leave the trail and follow hiking trail 34N towards Ellrich Market.
Upon arriving in Ellrich, you pass the Jewish cemetery on Töpferstraße and Nikolaiplatz. At the marketplace lies St. John's Church, first mentioned in 950, which succumbed to several city fires. During the rebuilding of the tower in 1672, stones from the Walkenried monastery church were used. Since 2023, the bell tower, destroyed at the beginning of the 20th century, has been under reconstruction.
From St. John's, continue past the small Gothic hospital church St. Spiritus and the city museum up to Galgenberg, which offers a unique panoramic view. Via hiking trail 34K, reach the natural monument Kelle—a gypsum cave with an approximately 5 m deep cave lake. A staircase leads into the sinkhole, offering a view into the cave. Via the Kelle circular trail, continue towards Bischofferode. You pass the remains of the Cistercian nunnery St. Nikolausberg, founded in 1238. The monastery was abandoned in 1294 and the convent relocated to Altendorf near Nordhausen.
On the eastern side of the valley lie stone walls, spoil heaps, and adits of Himmelberg, where concentration camp prisoners had to perform hard labor underground in 1944/45.
The route leads down to Woffleben, where St. John's Church with its unusual ground plan is worth a visit. It was built in 1752 at the request of Prussian King Frederick the Great, using stones from the Walkenried monastery church, replacing an earlier building. From Woffleben, the Kaiserweg goes through the Kammer Forest with beautiful beech trees. In the Kammer Forest, the Kaiserweg merges with the Karst hiking trail, which leads along the Ellrich cliffs to the KZ Memorial Ellrich-Juliushütte, a former subcamp of the Mittelbau-Dora concentration camp.
The trail now passes the Pontel ponds, ascending to the ridge of the Himmelreich gypsum massif. There, the Hexentanzplatz offers an impressive panorama. In 1868, a 300 m long railway tunnel was driven through the Himmelreich. During construction, a cave considered the largest natural cavity in Germany was discovered. Continuing past the steep slope of the Itel cliffs with views of the Itel pond, a fish pond created by the Walkenried monks. Via the cliff trail, descend into the Wieda valley and back to the monastery Walkenried, where you can relax in the monastery café.
