NATURA Tip 14 - Harly, Ecker, and Okertal near Vienenburg - Route 2

Our circular route of just under 7 km begins at the monastery hotel and first leads left past the former forest house into the Harly Mountains. A fork in the road is quickly reached. There we discover a memorial stone. It commemorates Fritz Laube, born in Berlin in 1914. The significant landscape and animal painter lived and worked in Vienenburg from 1950. Especially his animal paintings are still sought after on the art market today. Dioramas he created can be found in major museums in Lower Saxony and also in Springe hunting lodge. We leave the resting place to the left and continue up the Bear Valley to the Herb-August Cave. The old August is said to have lived in the quarry cave. He thanked those who worked in the monastery forest for bread and soup by sharing his knowledge of healing herbs. At the next fork in the road we keep towards Mittelweg. Soon a shelter is reached there. Again, it is 'keep left!' down the driveway to the southern edge of the forest of the Harly, where we now walk to the right towards the west. A bridge allows us to cross the Weddelbach stream. Contrary to the flow direction, we hike to the state road L 510, which connects Weddingen with Vienenburg. We follow it for just under 100 m before entering the forest via a path protected from vehicle traffic by a barrier heading south. The footpath leads up to the Harz monastery hiking trail, which runs on a former railway line. Over the track that once lay there, the salt mine operated by Preussag in the Harly until the water ingress in 1930 with its shafts I and II was connected to the Grauhof and Vienenburg stations. Just before shaft II, the trains passed Wöltingerode Monastery, the starting point and destination of our hike.

Parking facilities at Wöltingerode Monastery.

Tourist Information Goslar
Markt 1
38640 Goslar
Tel:05321 78060
marketing@goslar.de
www.goslar.de