Hike with boat ride

On our last day in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains, we took a trip near the Czech border to Kirnitzschklamm. Our hike started at the 'Buchenparkhalle' parking lot in Hinterhermsdorf.

Signs informed us that boat rides were currently only available from 12-4 pm, as logging work was taking place. So we spontaneously changed our planned route and started with the longer part to avoid arriving at the Upper Lock too early.

Along the way, we saw blueberries again, which we had often seen on our hikes. This time, we tried them, hoping they were really blueberries.

Our first destination was the 'Königsplatz,' a viewpoint at an altitude of 437 meters with a view over the rear Saxon Switzerland. It owes its name to the Saxon king Friedrich August II, who liked to stay here.

On the way and at the viewpoint, we noticed that many trees were dead. In fact, there were warning signs along the way about the dead trees, which can fall over during storms. The bark beetle is probably to blame. We had heard on the radio that even the German armed forces were supposed to go into action against them...

The path continued steeply downhill and meandered through the forest and past the typical rock formations.

Finally, we reached the Upper Lock, from which the boat ride was supposed to start. Some people had already gathered and were waiting in line when we arrived shortly before 12 o'clock.

So we waited for a while before we could board a boat and start our approximately half-hour ride.

The boatman told us a lot about the surroundings and a lot of nonsense about rock formations, so time passed quickly.

At the lock gate, we got off and hiked to the viewpoint 'Hermannseck.' We chose the steep and narrow path that led across iron stairs through a rock crevice and was really steep and narrow.

Then we made our way back through the forest to the parking lot, ending our last hike in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains.

Our vacation rental 'am Haselnussstrauch' (there was a huge hazelnut tree in the garden) was located in Thürmsdorf. We had driven past the chocolate factory in the village several times and wanted to visit it on our last afternoon.

You can't see the production there, but there is a small shop and café where you can try the chocolate directly. We opted for a white hot chocolate with blueberries and beetroot, as well as a white hot chocolate with coffee, cinnamon, and cardamom.

There was also a colorful mixture of delicacies from the chocolate factory. A tasty end to our time in Saxon Switzerland.