Nonnenfelsen (Zittau Mountains)
| Nuns rock | ||
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 Nuns rock with inn |
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| height | 537.1 m above sea level NN | |
| location | Saxony , Germany | |
| Mountains | Zittau Mountains | |
| Coordinates | 50 ° 51 '2 " N , 14 ° 41' 1" E | |
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| rock | Sandstone | |
The Nonnenfelsen are a rock formation on the southeast slope of the Buchberg in the Zittau Mountains in Saxony . They are 537 meters high, so they protrude about 100 meters above the valley of the Pochebach and are located southwest of the spa town of Jonsdorf . The nuns rocks include the most important climbing peaks in Jonsdorf, such as the gorge wall, the climbing summit Nonnenfelsen (on the terrace of the restaurant) and the Barbarine.
history
Hundreds of years ago, the rock formations, which were then also known as nuns' clumps, stimulated the imagination of the residents. Many saw in them the outlines of human beings, such as nuns with robes and habit , but also monks. Christian August Pescheck wrote about the bizarre rocks as early as 1791: "You can see ... two nuns close together with Schleyer and habit".
In 1846 Johann Friedrich Seidel , a nature-loving simple citizen of Jonsdorf (Kammstricker), literally started to make the summit of the Nonnenfelsen reachable with a hoe, spade and crowbar. He built the first bridges, made the rock lanes accessible and put up information boards.
Since not everything could be realized without financial means, one can speak of a fortunate circumstance that later a somewhat more affluent citizen of the poor weaving village was found, the miller Sussig , who supported him. After Seidel's death, Karl Gotthelf Buttig found another friend of nature, who began additional development work in 1858 and who was the first to build an inn on the summit plateau, which he received approval to build in 1859. The same opened at Whitsun in 1860 and soon became a popular restaurant. So bored on August 13, 1850 King Frederick Augustus on the lookout, and in 1888 King Albert to grouse hunting here. There is a memorial plaque for both events.
After a fire in 1902, the house was rebuilt in the form it still has today. As a special attraction, an echo cannon was used on the front platform, which, for a fee, generated a cannon shot with a seven-fold echo. The building was closed from 1990 to 1996.
geology
The sandstone of the Nonnenfelsen belongs to the Saxon Upper Cretaceous , the material consists mainly of gray, medium-grain quartz sandstone. The area is criss-crossed by a network of tertiary volcanic dikes and chimneys, the hot lava of which turned the sandstone into a coveted hard millstone on contact . The millstone quarries in the area testify to this.
Two rock lanes ( Schwarzer Gang and Zigeunerstuben ) are impressive, both of which are approx. 100 meters long, 2 to 4 meters wide and approx. 20 to 30 meters deep. They were probably formed by the erection of rock layers, whereby the harder material ( iron ore , also called iron ore plates) withstood the erosion and the unknown filling material (tuff?) Was removed. The side walls of the rocky passages today show a smooth surface covered with iron ore plates.
Paths to the summit
Probably the most famous ascent is the hiking trail from the gondola ride towards the Czech border (hiking border crossing) over the steps of the Black Ganges . In the black corridor you can reach a viewing gallery through a narrow crevice.
Another option is the route via Zigeunerstuben, the entrance to which is about 100 meters north of the gondola ride on Dorfstrasse. This ascent is very impressive due to the multitude of bizarre rock formations and a deep rock gorge.
From Waltersdorf you can get from the old Wache customs house via Hohlsteinweg to the Nonnenfelsen without having to negotiate significant differences in altitude.
Since the mid-1990s, a via ferrata , which branches off from the ascent from the gondola ride, has also led over the Nonnenfelsen.
Worth seeing
In addition to the rock passages mentioned, the towers of the nuns' rocks that have been made accessible are also worth seeing. This can be reached safely via bridges and steps carved into the stone.
view
From the top of the Nonnenfelsen you have a wonderful view of the spa town of Jonsdorf, which lies at your feet . You can see the jagged Jonsdorf rock town opposite the valley basin, the millstone quarries , the high forest towering behind it , the Lausche , the crown near Görlitz and parts of the Jizera Mountains .
literature
- Ernst Siegl: Our Upper Lusatian Mountains - a hiking guide , Domowina-Verlag GmbH, Bautzen, 1991
- Meyer's nature guide Upper Lusatia; Meyers Lexikonverlag Mannheim / Leipzig / Vienna / Zurich; ISBN 3-411-07161-3
- The south-eastern Upper Lusatia with Zittau and the Zittau Mountains (= values of the German homeland . Volume 16). 1st edition. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 1970.
- Peter Rölke (Ed.): Hiking and nature guide Zittauer Gebirge , Berg- und Naturverlag Rölke, Dresden, 2006
Web links
