This varied and scenic tour first leads through the idyllic Elbe Valley. In addition to other historical and culturally significant buildings, the Königstein Fortress is the highlight of the cycle tour.
We start our tour in Königstein and cycle along the Elbe cycle path in a westerly direction. We always follow the symbol with the blue 'e'. In the spa town of Rathen, it is worthwhile to make a short stop at the so-called Klangterrassen, which offer a musical experience every half hour (between Easter and October). After a total of about 9 km, we finally reach Stadt Wehlen. We reach the town in the district of Pötzscha on Rathener Weg and then turn left into Robert-Sterl-Straße. This takes us out of the Elbe valley and uphill a little. In Robert-Sterl-Straße we pass the former studio and home of the German painter Robert Sterl. A number of his paintings are exhibited in the house, and his grave is in the garden. Directly behind the house we turn left into the Hermann-Schneider-Weg and pass the Großer and Kleiner Bärenstein on this path. At the Kleiner Bärenstein car park, where there is a covered rest area and an information board, we turn right. Now the trail goes downhill again a little. After about 500 m, a hiking trail branches off to the left (with the symbol red dot on a white background), which we follow. A little later we pass the small Thürmsdorf Castle with its castle park. It is worth taking a short walk here. At the eastern edge of the village we then continue on the path "Am Schloßberg". Where this path ends, it is worth making a short stop to climb up to the Biedermann mausoleum. Here you can enjoy a wonderful view of the Elbe valley. We then drive back into the village on the Pehnaberg road, but then turn left at an acute angle into the Thürmsdorfer Straße. We leave Thürmsdorf behind us on this road. We cross the state road and continue straight ahead on the hiking trail. Shortly afterwards, we come to the main road 172 on the left, which we pass under through a tunnel. Here we have to carry our bike over some steps. Immediately afterwards we reach the hotel-restaurant "Neue Schänke". If we are planning an extensive exploration of Königstein Fortress, we can fortify ourselves here. We then continue in a south-easterly direction to Königstein Fortress. The fortress covers almost 10 hectares and you should plan at least two hours for a tour. After visiting the historic walls and enjoying the view over the Elbe valley, we cycle back to Königstein. To do this, we cycle from the entrance to the fortress back to the path we came on and turn left at an acute angle at the first opportunity. We follow the hiking trail with the white-blue-white symbol and cycle along the foot of the fortress. This is also where the popular long-distance hiking trail Malerweg runs through the Elbe Sandstone Mountains for a total of 112 km. Finally, be careful on the last kilometre to Königstein, as it is steep downhill. We can conclude our varied tour with a walk through Königstein.
