Heiligengeistklamm
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The Heiligengeistklamm is a gorge near Leutschach in southern Styria in Austria . It leads from the Spitzmühle in Schloßberg to Sveti Duh in Slovenia . It is designated as a landscape protection area.
General
The entry point into the Heiligengeistklamm in Schloßberg is the Spitzmühle, a show water mill rebuilt according to old plans. From there the path follows the Heiligengeistbach.
In the hiking trail network of the South Styrian Wine Road, the Heiligengeistklamm is integrated into the clover leaf hiking trail No. 1 (a total of 21.6 km). The hike can be done in several ways. The gorge hike (circular hike) with the way back via the Buschenschank Postl / Dobay is 9.1 km. A total of 500 meters in altitude are overcome. The lowest point at 390 m is the starting point / entry into the gorge, the highest point at 903 m is the church of Sv. Moron. The gorge itself is around 3 km long.
The gorge has some rocky spots and small waterfalls . It is easy to walk with sturdy shoes. The gorge is secured with ropes at some steeper places, falls and landslides. In the winter months when there is snow and ice, it is difficult to access. From a botanical point of view, it has many special features: moon violets, rare ferns, wild goat's beard, etc. v. a.
Emergence
Running water on steep surfaces has tremendous energies that are converted into erosion . The water works its way deeper and deeper into the ground and cuts a steep channel into the subsoil. If the subsoil consists of hard, resistant rock, a gorge will form. Here the Heiligengeistbach has cut into the rocks.
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Economical meaning
In the past centuries the gorge was the shortest route from Leutschach to Sveti Duh. The Heiligengeistbach was of considerable economic importance. The neighboring, very lonely and difficult to reach farmers built mills , which were driven by the stream, in the gorge so that they could grind their grain as close as possible to their farms. Steep paths were laid down into the gorge, on which the grain was brought to the mills with pack animals and most of which are still used today for forestry work. Two of these mills (Kuremühle, Ruadlmühle) were also small, water-powered sawmills , which could be put into operation when the stream was abundant - mainly when the snow was melting. Today the water is only used for a foam mill ("New Point Mill"), which is located at the entrance to the gorge and can be visited.
Natural jewel Heiligengeistklamm
From the 1960s and 70s, the mills were left to decay; the footpath through the gorge and the access paths to the mills have gradually been reclaimed by nature. From 1968 the Styria began. Berg- und Naturwacht Leutschach to rebuild the footpaths, to make the numerous river crossings accessible and to secure the difficult to walk stretches. Not least because of the "Leutschacher Volkswandertag", which has been taking place every year since 1968, more and more hikers and tourists discovered the natural beauty of this gorge and over the course of a few years it has developed into a much-visited tourist destination.
Every Pentecost Sunday in the church of Sv. Duh na ostrem vrhu held one service in German and one in Slovenian. Many visitors hike through the Heiligengeistklamm to the church or come by car from near and far to the traditional Whitsun festival with Kirtag and lots of folk music.
In 2011, the Heiligengeistklamm was declared a “natural jewel” as part of the cross-border project ETZ Hiking & Biking, because it is “something special, has a high aesthetic appeal, lets you experience natural phenomena, is off the beaten track, is close to nature and at the top of the Natural beauty belongs ... "
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The Heiligengeistklamm was badly hit by snow and freezing rain in February 2014. Broken trees made the gorge impassable. 40 soldiers of the Austrian Armed Forces and numerous volunteers helped to make the gorge accessible again. Since July 2014 you can hike through the gorge again.
In October 2015, the Heiligengeistklamm was chosen as the state winner in Styria for the ORF show "9 Places - 9 Treasures" - Austria's most beautiful hidden place.
literature
- R. Speil: Gorges and gorges in Austria . Leopold Stocker Verlag, Graz-Stuttgart 2006, p. 303 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Heiligengeistklamm near Leutschach on the Weinstrasse - steirische-spezialitaeten.at. Retrieved October 9, 2015 .