Collecting stamps in Zorge Route 9 – 3 stamps

This moderately difficult hike is about 14 km long. It starts at the Hercynian Distilling Co / Hammerschmiede, a spirits manufactory. Then continue along the Elsbach past the Hundred Acres meadow on one side and the Maiden's Cliff on the other to the Stepmother (Stamp 164). From here, the path follows the Harz Border Trail to the Pregnant Maiden and the Spiral Oak (Stamp 165). It owes its name to a spiral staircase built at the beginning of the 20th century to reach the observation platform built in the crown of the oak. Here you leave the Harz Border Trail and hike over the Zankecke to the Red Shot (Stamp 90). The Red Shot is a beautifully located viewpoint with a shelter that invites you to rest. It drops so steeply into the valley that you can see the red porphyry of the mountain. Perhaps that is how the mountain got its name. Then it goes to the Wegspinne, a crossroads where paths go in all four directions. The path first leads uphill over the Pfaffenborn/Kuhtalskopf until you meet the Harz Border Trail again. Then you turn right and return to the Stepmother. From there, the return route is the same as the way out to the starting point.

Sturdy footwear, packed lunch

Coming from Walkenried, turn right into Taubentalstraße and from Hohegeiß or Braunlage, turn left into Taubentalstraße towards the Hammerschmiede.

Parking lot at the Hercynian Distilling Co / Hammerschmiede in Zorge

Travel by train from Nordhausen or Göttingen to Walkenried, then take bus 470 to Taubentalstraße Zorge.

There are no places to stop for food along the way, so pack enough provisions and drinks. You could also take a small detour to the special stamp Two-Country Oak and see this special tree.

Map sheet 2 of the Harz Hiking Badge map set