Circular hike - Doktor Wald-Weg - Thuringian Forest

The Route:

The DR WALD Forest Trail – Wellbeing for Body and Soul

Taking a walk in the forest is pure relaxation. Not only that: it is good for your health. It strengthens the immune system, boosts the metabolism, reduces stress, presents an opportunity to slow down and invigorates all the senses.

The DR WALD Trail invites you to enjoy the relaxing and beneficial health effects of the forest.

The 13 km long circular trail between Stützerbach, Frauenwald and Schmiedefeld passes through the middle of the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Thuringian Forest.

You can join the trail at Stützerbach, at Rennsteig railway station or from the hikers’ car park there. At weekends, you can reach these via rail: the Rennsteigbahn runs from Erfurt directly via Ilmenau to Rennsteig railway station.

If you are starting from Hüttenplatz in Stützerbach, the route leads out of Stützerbach past the Kneipp facility. Passing through biologically diverse pastures and wetland meadows in the Busselbach Valley, the route descends via the Panorama Trail into the Gläser Valley and along the Path of Tranquillity past the wildlife habitat protection area into the idyllic Rote Grund. The DR WALD Trail twice crosses the path of the Rennsteig, one of Germany’s most famous ridgeway trails.

Heading onwards through protected mountain pastures and moorland with important plant species (such as arnica, rare orchids, sphagnum mosses and cotton grass), and after a brief detour to the watercourse of the Rennsteigteich, you reach one of the highest-lying railway stations in Germany, Rennsteig station, where the inn of the same name offers a welcome opportunity for a break.

Continuing through the Göpferbach Valley and following the course of the Lengwitz, the trail heads back towards Stützerbach.

15 wayside points and resting places strategically placed along the trail invite you to relax and immerse yourself in the forest and engage your senses. Dr Wald benches, sky loungers and a sky swing provide opportunities to unwind, to let your gaze wander and breathe in your surroundings.

Picnic areas at Stützerbach Kneipp Park, at various points along the Panorama Trail, at the Massenmühle in Gläsertal and at the Schwarzwasser rest area, provide opportunities to take a break.

The circular route can be experienced in different ways – as a day trip spent forest bathing at your leisure, or as a vigorous hike (4 hours with breaks) or as shorter 3.5 km or 6 km long circular routes. You can also take a pleasant 4.9 km or 6.7 km relaxed walk between the Rennsteig and Stützerbach railway stations.

“And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.”

John Muir, naturalist and philosopher, 1838–1914

Note: The DR WALD Trail is a sustainable regional development project for National Natural Landscapes funded by the Free State of Thuringia. The DR WALD Trail was established in 2021-2022 and is a joint project by the cities of Ilmenau and Suhl.

Concept: StadtStrategen. Office for integrative urban and regional development. Design: Anke Heelemann. Photo: Thomas Müller