To the Idagrotte and Vorderer Raubschloss in the Kleiner Zschand

The hike begins at the Felsenmühle in the Kirnitzschtal valley. We follow the Kleiner Zschand (marked with a green line), a dry valley that only carries water sporadically. At the Quenenwiesen meadows, we leave the path with the green line markings and follow Zeughausstraße until we reach Wettinplatz. From here, the red dot/M marker takes us left towards Kleiner Winterberg. We follow this marker uphill and keep left at the top. At a crossroads, we turn right and walk along the Reitsteig trail (blue line) until we reach the signpost for Frienstein. We turn right, later we come to a hollow with a small water house. We keep right and after the short climb turn left to make a detour to the Idagrotte and Frienstein.

In the 15th century, the 130 metre-high Frienstein was the site of a castle keep of the Berken von der Duba family; later owners were the Wettin family. However, robber barons also took up residence, which is why the Frienstein still bears the nickname "Vorderes Raubschloss" (front robber castle) today. A large cave, the Idagrotte, is located on the Frienstein. It is a fissure and layered joint cave that can only be reached via a narrow ledge.

Back from the detour, we continue to the right (green line) towards the Frienstein steps, which we descend into the valley. At the bottom we meet the red line path, turn left and take the next path (Heideweg) to the right. This is marked with a green line and takes us through the Dietrichsgrund back into the Kirnitzschtal valley. The end point of the hike is the Beuthenfall bus stop.