Why this ride
108 km from Freiberg to Freiberg, about 2 h 13 of riding. It goes by way of Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines, Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape and back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Freiberg Mining Landscape and Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 108 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 13
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Freiberg Mining Landscape
Silver was found near Freiberg in 1168, and within a few decades the town had become one of the richest in Saxony. For eight centuries, miners dug ever deeper into the hills, and the wealth they brought up paid for churches, palaces and the splendours of Dresden. Freiberg's Bergakademie, founded in 1765, is the oldest mining university in the world still operating, and its mineral collection is one of the finest anywhere. The town and its mining landscape are part of the Erzgebirge mining region listed by UNESCO, shared between Germany and the Czech Republic.
Read the complete Freiberg Mining Landscape write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Freiberg Mining Landscape is where the day begins. Next is Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines.
2. Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines
In 2008, when parts of the old town of Dippoldiswalde began to subside, engineers investigating the problem found something nobody expected: a network of medieval silver mines running beneath the streets, dating back to the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. The tunnels contained remarkably well preserved wooden ladders, tools and even shoes, offering an unparalleled glimpse of mining at the start of the Ore Mountains' silver boom. These finds are part of the Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří Mining Region listed by UNESCO in 2019.
Read the complete Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines comes up about 29 km into the recorded legs. Next is Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape.
3. Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape
Altenberg lives with a hole in the ground, and is proud of it. The Pinge, a huge funnel of collapsed workings beside the town, opened up in 1620 when old tin mine tunnels caved in, and later collapses widened it into the crater you can look into today. Tin was the reason for everything here: the town grew around the mines in the fifteenth century, and the Zinnwald workings a few kilometres up the ridge, right on the Czech border, kept digging into modern times. The whole district is part of the Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří Mining Region, a UNESCO listing shared between Saxony and Bohemia.
Read the complete Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 54 km into the recorded legs you reach Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape. Next is back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines.
4. back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines, late in the day. Next is Freiberg Mining Landscape.
5. Freiberg Mining Landscape
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Freiberg Mining Landscape write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Freiberg Mining Landscape. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Freiberg Mining Landscape to Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines
Freiberg Mining Landscape → Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines to Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape
Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines → Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape to back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines
Altenberg-Zinnwald Mining Landscape → back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines to Freiberg Mining Landscape
back through Dippoldiswalde Medieval Silver Mines → Freiberg Mining Landscape is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.