Plan a route here Copy route
Hiking route recommended route

Hiking - Summit Hiking Trail - Suhl-Goldlauter - Thuringian Forest

· 4 reviews · Hiking route · Thuringia · Open
Responsible for this content
Thüringer Wald Verified partner  Explorers Choice 
  • Schneekopf in the Thuringian Forest
    Schneekopf in the Thuringian Forest
    Photo: Peter Hollek, Thüringer Wald

A crisp tour for athletic-fit hikers who like to push their limits:
The summit trail is 30 kilometres long and leads over seven mountain peaks at over 900 metres.

Open
difficult
Distance 32.8 km
11:00 h
938 m
931 m
983 m
534 m

From Suhl, the trail starts with a rapid ascent to 867 metres to the Salzberg summit - the entry point to the 900-metre peaks of the Thuringian Forest. At the mountain station of the Skilift Goldlauter you have the first fantastic panoramic view over the southern Thuringian Forest.

A little later you reach the Kalte Herberge. Past the Großer Eisenberg (907 m), the summit trail continues along the mountain ridges to the lift hut at the top station of the ski lift of the Winterwelt Schmiedefeld. The summit hiking trail turns north here and leads you through dense woodland to the rest area at the Kreuzwegen. Via the Rennsteig trail, you will reach the Großer Finsterberg. At 940 m, you have a wonderful view of Schmiedefeld and the adjacent Vessertal.

After the short detour, continue over the Mordfleck and the Goldlauterberg (874 m) towards Bortsenplatz. Here you will find the Herbert Roth memorial stone. You leave the Rennsteig again and glide to the Fichtenkopf (944 m). The gentle descent to the Heidersbacher Tränke and Suhler Hütte provides a short rest. This is a wonderful place to rest before you start the ascent to the highest point of the tour via the Schmücke on the Schneekopf .

After the Schmücke and past the Schneekopfblick, you reach the Güldene Brücke. From here, one of the steepest stages begins to the Teufelskanzel and finally to the Schneekopf. The mountain, which is actually only 978 m high, has a special feature: it has an observation tower with a visitor platform at an altitude of exactly 1001.1 m. This makes it the highest vantage point in the world. This makes it the highest vantage point in all of Thuringia. Only the top of the Inselsberg radio tower is higher. Those who feel slightly thirsty after the exertions of the climb can pick up refreshments at the Neue Gehlberger Hütte.

Over the Rosenkopf, follow the trail downhill again for the time being. At Plänckners Aussicht below the Großer Beerberg (983 m) you have a magnificent view south towards Suhl and Zella-Mehlis in the west. From the Suhler Ausspanne, the trail goes straight downhill past the Dietzen-Lorenz-Stein, passing the Unterer Beerberg to the Goldlauter ski hut.

The Rosenkopfstraße finally leads you back to Goldlauter and the starting point of your tour via the Waldschenke am Geiersberg.

Author’s recommendation

The Gehlberger Hütte on the Schneekopf is the highest excursion restaurant in the Thuringian Forest - Fantastic view: Free of charge
Profile picture of Paul Hentschel
Author
Paul Hentschel 
Update: November 07, 2022
Quality route according to "Wanderbares Deutschland"
Difficulty
difficult
Technique
Stamina
Experience
Landscape
Highest point
Great Beerberg, 983 m
Lowest point
534 m
Best time of year
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Track types

Asphalt 0.07%Dirt road 35.20%Forested/wild trail 43.08%Path 19.44%Road 2.19%
Asphalt
0 km
Dirt road
11.6 km
Forested/wild trail
14.1 km
Path
6.4 km
Road
0.7 km
Show elevation profile

Rest stops

Skibaude am Geiersberg
Waldschenke am Geiersberg

Safety information

Always stay on the excellent hiking trails.

Tips and hints

Thuringian Forest

Hiking trails in Suhl

Start

Pfannrain/ Suhl-Goldlauter car park (542 m)
Coordinates:
DD
50.628558, 10.744379
DMS
50°37'42.8"N 10°44'39.8"E
UTM
32U 623373 5609972
w3w 
///headliner.homemade.snappy

Destination

Ski hut Suhl-Goldlauter

Turn-by-turn directions

Wegscheide car park - Kalte Herberge - Eisenberg (902 m) - Liftbaude Schmiedefeld - Kreuzwege - Großer Finsterberg (944 m) - Mordfleck - Borstenplatz - Gedenkstein Herbert Roth - Fichtenkopf (944 m) - Suhler Hütte - Schmücke - Sachsenstein (915 m) - Quellen der Gera - Seifartsburg, Teufelskanzel - Schneekopf (978 m) - Rosenkopf (939 m) - Plänckners Aussicht - Großer Beerberg (982 m) - Suhler Ausspanne - Skibaude Goldlauter - Waldschenke am Geiersberg

Public transport

Public-transport-friendly

You can reach Suhl by train with Deutsche Bahn. From the bus station directly at the railway station, you can take the bus line D1 to the bus stop "Goldlauter Brücke "to the starting point of the tour.

To plan your journey, you can use the travel portal of Deutsche Bahn.

By road

Coming from the A71, take exit 19 (Suhl / Zella-Mehlis) and continue on Gothaer Straße south towards the centre. After entering Suhl, turn left (2x) towards Goldlauter.

Parking

Use the car park at SUhler Straße - branch Zellaer Str. (Google NAV point)

Coordinates

DD
50.628558, 10.744379
DMS
50°37'42.8"N 10°44'39.8"E
UTM
32U 623373 5609972
w3w 
///headliner.homemade.snappy
Arrival by train, car, foot or bike

Equipment

Sturdy shoes, rainwear, drink reserve, first aid kit, GPS device

Localization

Parts of this content were machine translated using German as the source language


Questions and answers

Ask the first question

Would you like to the ask the author a question?


Rating

5.0
(4)
Steffen Heinze
April 21, 2022 · Community
Show more
When did you do this route? April 08, 2022
Susann Müller
September 06, 2021 · Community
Show more
Florian Hemm
June 12, 2021 · Community
Show more
When did you do this route? April 27, 2021
Photo: Florian Hemm, Community
Photo: Florian Hemm, Community
Photo: Florian Hemm, Community
Photo: Florian Hemm, Community
Photo: Florian Hemm, Community
Show all reviews

Photos from others

+ 3

Status
Open
Reviews
Difficulty
difficult
Distance
32.8 km
Duration
11:00 h
Ascent
938 m
Descent
931 m
Highest point
983 m
Lowest point
534 m
Public-transport-friendly Circular route Scenic Refreshment stops available Summit route Flora Fauna

Statistics

  • Content
  • Show images Hide images
Features
Maps and trails
  • 25 Waypoints
  • 25 Waypoints
Distance  km
Duration : h
Ascent  m
Descent  m
Highest point  m
Lowest point  m
Push the arrows to change the view