Goethe Trail in the Thuringian Forest: Ilmenau – Stützerbach

The hiking trail has seen better days. There are a lot of bare patches and felled trees in the middle of the trail and the hiking trail is barely recognizable. Nevertheless, it is one of the most beautiful trails I have walked so far. @Touringen

Today we took the train from Gera via Erfurt to Ilmenau, then continued on to Stützerbach with bus number 300. A beautiful tour with some elevation gain, great views, and three touring stamps.

In the morning, as I looked out the window, the sun peeked through; the weather app showed a mix of clouds and rain. My inner voice demanded to be heard, and I spontaneously threw on the rain jacket and sunscreen. I jumped in the car and drove to Stützerbach, took the train for two stops, and off I went in Ilmenau. The start and end of the route are perfectly connected to the railway network. After a short climb up to the Goethe Trail, my calves are now up to speed, and I quickly realize why Goethe was inspired here. My first glimpse of the horizon is from the Himmelsliege (sky lounger) near the Trauttmann Monument. Next comes the Schwalbenstein Hut, lounger number two at the hut near the Marienquelle (marien spring), and the Emmastein with a view of the Manebach Valley. Everything invites you to rest. A water treading pool, created in 2024, is waiting to be tried out. The test passed, a top grade. I stroll through Manebach and get a running start for the mountains. I've climbed the great Hermannstein at 756 meters; the view speaks for itself. A short time later, the next fantastic panorama opens up from the tower at Kickelhahn, 861 meters high. I descend, following the tuning fork symbol or Goethe's G marking, over the Hirtenwiese and Ochsenwiese meadows. The first mushrooms are already tentatively poking their heads out. At Knöpfelstaler Teich, my body nestles perfectly into the sky. It's easy to lose yourself here... it's one of those places that doesn't ask who you are, but simply lets you be, and sometimes that's all you need. Thank you. Through the dark hole, I reach the heights around Stützerbach. A caterpillar crawls through the picture. The largest I've ever seen, about 7 cm long and over a centimeter in diameter. Fantastic, a willow borer caterpillar. The caterpillar is more beautiful than the later butterfly, I think. The evening atmosphere begins, and the earth continues to turn. I reflect once more from the Schlossberg, looking at the setting sun on the horizon. Trusting my intuition instead of the weather app was the right decision today. Raindrops? None. Sunscreen? Recommended. The Goethe Trail? Excellent.

"Goethe hiking trail" Ilmenau -> Stuetzerbach ------------------------------ Walk in Goethe's footsteps through dense forests and picturesque valleys. ------------------------------ IOV bus (line 300) Stützerbach / Recovery - 7:20am Ilmenau / Wetzlarer Platz - 7:34 a.m ------------------------------ www.tourenportal-thueringer-wald.de/de/tour/wandern/goethewanderweg-ilmenau-thueringer-wald/18294127/

The weather is still stable and so I am working my way further south in terms of stamping. And today the Goetheweg from Ilmenau to Stutzerbach was the "victim". Oliver accompanied me. Ilmenau can also be easily reached by train from Mühlhausen with only 1 change and a journey of around 1.5 hours. We already knew the Schwalbenstein and the Kickelhahn, but I haven't walked the route like this before. And so we passed the Emmastein and the Großer Hermannstein and of course we climbed up there too. I was last on the Kickelhahn about 10 years ago. It has now apparently been completely renovated. The last stamp "Finsteres Loch" was a bit confusing, because we would have assumed the box to be at the picnic station of the same name and not at the bridge. The bridge and with it the stamp box just barely escaped a falling tree, it definitely looks very desolate and battered there at the moment.

First we took the bus from Stüzerbach to Ilmenau. In Stüzerbach, it is best to take the Eintracht stop. It has a shelter with a bench and you can sit in the shade there in the morning if you have to wait longer. My bus was 10 minutes late. The Goetheweg is worthwhile, although I liked the part from Kickelhahn better than the one before. My personal highlight was the dark hole. I didn't meet anyone on the way down and back out, and when you're standing in the clearing where the three paths meet, you're all alone and only hear the rustling of trees, it's really something.

With wonderful hiking weather on Good Friday, we hiked the Goethe hiking trail from Ilmenau to Sützerbach. We left the car at the Stützerbach train station and took the Rennsteig shuttle (only on weekends and public holidays) to Ilmenau. Due to the length and the altitude, it is quite a strenuous hike that scores with many highlights, beautiful views and great picnic spots. https://www.tourenportal-thueringer-wald.de/de/tour/wandern/goethewanderweg-ilmenau-thueringer-wald/18294127/ Stamp points (all easy to find and OK): 143 Schwalbenstein 144 Goethe house 145 Dark Hole In the sense of Goethe: "You've only really been where you've walked."

Actually we wanted to continue walking on the Werra-Burgen-Steig today. But since the train was on strike, it became the inspection of the Goethe hiking trail. The number 300 bus brought us reliably to Ilmenau. From there we started the journey. The route went really well. Many small paths lead through the forest from highlight to highlight. Refreshments are also on the way (Schöffenhaus and KIckelhahn). However, the meters in altitude to be mastered are not without. The descent from the Auerhahn down to Stutzerbach is also very nice. Here you can once again admire very nice views. All in all a really recommendable tour.