Mědník Hill Mining Landscape and Freiberg Mining Landscape
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
286 km
Riding-time estimate
4 h 45
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.
286 km from Klášterec nad Ohří to Klášterec nad Ohří, about 4 h 45 of riding. It goes by way of Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape, Uranium Mining Landscape, Freiberg Mining Landscape and back through Uranium Mining Landscape. It crosses from Czechia into Germany - carry ID and check vignette or toll rules. The line favours views over speed.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Mědník Hill Mining Landscape
Mědník is a small, steep hill on the Czech side of the Ore Mountains, or Krušné hory, the range that forms the border between Bohemia and Saxony. It rises above the village of Měděnec, whose name, like the hill's, comes from the Czech word for copper. For centuries, miners tunnelled into the hill for copper and iron ore, and the hill is now part of the Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří Mining Region, inscribed by UNESCO in 2019 as a cross-border site.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mědník Hill Mining Landscape is where the day begins. Next is Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape.
2. Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape
Silver built Annaberg. In the late fifteenth century rich silver ore was found in the Erzgebirge, the Ore Mountains on the border between Saxony and Bohemia, and a town was founded almost overnight in 1496 to house the miners. Within a few decades Annaberg was one of the largest towns in Saxony, and its wealth paid for the St. Annenkirche, one of the most beautiful late Gothic hall churches in Germany, with slender pillars branching into a star-ribbed vault like the trunks of trees.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape comes up about 28 km into the recorded legs. Next is Uranium Mining Landscape.
3. Uranium Mining Landscape
Look at this landscape and you would never guess what was under it. The land south of Lößnitz and around Bad Schlema is green, pretty and slightly hilly, a foothill of the Ore Mountains with small towns, orchards and the Zwickauer Mulde river slipping through. But between 1946 and 1990 this was the heart of the Wismut mining company, a Soviet-German enterprise that dug uranium on a huge scale for the Soviet atomic programme. East Germany became one of the world's largest uranium producers, and the work left deep shafts, tall spoil heaps and a population who knew what their work was for and rarely spoke about it.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 66 km into the recorded legs you reach Uranium Mining Landscape. Next is Freiberg Mining Landscape.
4. 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.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mědník Hill Mining Landscape closes the day.
Leg by leg
Mědník Hill Mining Landscape to Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape
Mědník Hill Mining Landscape → Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape to Uranium Mining Landscape
Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape → Uranium Mining Landscape is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Uranium Mining Landscape to Freiberg Mining Landscape
Uranium Mining Landscape → Freiberg Mining Landscape is 77 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Freiberg Mining Landscape to back through Uranium Mining Landscape
Freiberg Mining Landscape → back through Uranium Mining Landscape is 78 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Uranium Mining Landscape to back through Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape
back through Uranium Mining Landscape → back through Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape is 37 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape to Mědník Hill Mining Landscape
back through Annaberg-Frohnau Mining Landscape → Mědník Hill Mining Landscape is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.