The best walks and hikes around Hochburg-Ach

1.051 meters, six castle courtyards, magnificent gardens, two chapels, and a breathtaking panorama: Burghausen Castle is not only the longest castle in the world, it is a masterpiece of medieval architecture and the heart of the city. As you stroll through the centuries on a walk through the castle courtyards and finally cross a massive wooden bridge through the mighty iron gate into the defiant main castle, you are transported to the pure Middle Ages and experience a unique piece of European history. The first expansion of the castle began in the 11th century, followed by further development as the seat of the Counts of Burghausen in the 12th century. The fortress complex took on its present form in the 15th century under the wealthy Lower Bavarian Dukes, particularly Duke Henry XIII and Duke George the Rich. Source:https://www.visit-burghausen.com/weltlaengste-burg

There is also the start of the Mühlenweg

Unfortunately, the chapel was closed

Approximately two kilometers south of Maria Ach, in the middle of the forest, lies the "Heilbründl", one of two Brünnl chapels in Hochburg-Ach. Directly below the chapel, a contained spring emerges. Inside the chapel, there is a statue of the Virgin Mary from 1963. According to legend, the robber knight Meier Helmbrecht, after being "blinded" (which means his eyes were burned out), came here to alleviate his pain.

The small Marienkapelle, which houses a spring that is said to heal eye ailments, was built on a wooded slope above the Salzach. The Via Nova pilgrimage route leads almost directly past the church, which is well worth seeing and is located directly opposite Raitenhaslach Monastery. There are several benches around the chapel, inviting you to take a rest.

The current structure, a steel and concrete bridge, was inaugurated in 1963 – three years after the "New Bridge" further upstream. Locals still refer to it as the "Old Bridge," as it was first mentioned in 1272 and had several predecessors, which were completely or partially destroyed at least 12 times by floods and 6 times by ice jams. In 1809, Austrian troops rendered the bridge unusable to hinder Napoleon I Bonaparte's advance to Vienna. During a minor flood in 1959, a work platform that broke loose from the "New Bridge" severely damaged the "Old Bridge," before the major flood of the same year destroyed the temporary bridge that had been erected at short notice; for a time, there was no permanent crossing of the Salzach River near Burghausen, only a ferry service. This flood – with a maximum water level of 8.14 meters, one of Burghausen's worst – was the catalyst for the construction of the flood protection wall.

The border between Germany and Austria is in the middle of the Salzach

The Holy Spirit Hospital, with its Holy Spirit Church, is a former hospital in the old town of Burghausen. It now serves as a church meeting center and a BRK retirement home. Between 1319 and 1332, Friedrich der Mautner and his brother-in-law Konrad Ermreich founded a hospital building with a church and cemetery outside the city gates for the sick and needy. The hospital existed here until 1956 and was replaced by a new building on the banks of the Salzach River. Afterward, the building served as an episcopal seminary and, since 1993, as the church meeting center "Haus der Begegnung Heilig Geist" (House of Encounter Holy Spirit).