Saxon Switzerland

Due to work reasons, I ended up in Zittau in the easternmost part of Germany. I took advantage of that to extend my stay for a day and go hiking in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains.

A hiking recommendation:

Start at a parking lot near the bus station in Hohnstein. There are descriptions of various day trips, but be careful: it is not mentioned which symbol to follow, so confusion is guaranteed without local knowledge. Nevertheless, I hope that this description encourages some of you ☺

From the parking lot, we descended into the village, following the Malerweg into the forest, with the castle above us. The first destination was the Wolfsschlucht (Wolf's Gorge) and from there, countless steps up to the Hockstein with its beautiful view.

We followed the signs down to the Amselseegrund (Amselsee Valley), where we encountered some tourists.

Following the crowd, we came to a fork in the road, where straight ahead there are supposed to be waterfalls, which apparently are the main destination for most people here. However, we turned left and climbed up again through the 'Schwedenlöcher' (Swedish Holes).

After a challenging ascent, we reached the top and from there, we were already close to the Bastei in Rathen, a very (!!) popular hiking destination. Not so much for hikers, but for numerous tour buses that rush tourists for a photo. Of course, we also wanted to enjoy the great and famous view and joined the crowd. The panoramic view makes up for the crowds, the rock formations are magnificent and each one looks different.

Nevertheless, we quickly started our descent to Rathen, where we took a food break. However, we realized how exhausted we were and how late it was, so we decided not to continue hiking. Unfortunately, there were no taxis that we could take. Nor were there any buses. What to do? A nice shuttle bus driver was on a break and took pity on us and took us back to Hohnstein - we were very lucky! Note for those who want to take the route: start early enough, then the return trip will work as well. Alternatively, stay up at the tourist parking lot near the Bastei, where some public transport buses also start their route👍