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Lourdes Grotto

Caves

Lourdes Grotto

Highlight • Religious Site

Lourdes Grotto

Name: Lourdes Grotto
Rating: 2

Recommended by 15 hikers

This Highlight is in a protected area

Please check local regulations for: Naturpark Hirschwald

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Location: Upper Palatinate, Bavaria, Germany

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Best Hikes to Lourdes Grotto

4.4

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1. View of Kastl Abbey – Kastl Monastery Castle loop from Kastl

25.7km

07:19

590m

Expert hike. Very good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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4.6

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2. Bat Tower on the Lauterach – Kastl Monastery Castle loop from Utzenhofen

13.4km

03:45

270m

Intermediate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Intermediate

4.6

(5)

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3. Kastl Monastery Castle – Bat Tower on the Lauterach loop from Kastl

13.3km

03:45

270m

Intermediate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Intermediate

Tips

Staufer

September 14, 2025

Lourdes Grotto

Pastor Schraml, who had been pastor in Utzenhofen since 1891, conceived the plan to build a Lourdes Grotto, similar to the Lourdes Grotto in France. He felt it was important to find many believers for this purpose.
So, a suitable location had to be found. After many suggestions, a cave on the Hummelberg, about 15 minutes from Utzenhofen, was chosen. The location seemed most suitable, as it was a natural rock cave that, however, had to be prepared for its new use. It was overgrown with impenetrable undergrowth and filled with rubble, boulders, and debris. The cave, called the "Goashöhle," was probably previously used to house and shelter goats during rainy weather.
A special supporter and co-founder was the then master carpenter Fink and his son Willibald, who was still present at a celebration in 1958 at the age of 74. It was thanks to them that the cave was cleared and cleared. Willibald Fink also reported that during the excavations to clean and expose the cave, a sacrificial altar was discovered at the entrance. It can therefore be assumed that it was a pre-Christian sacrificial site.
In March 1895, the initiator, Pastor Schraml, died unexpectedly and was thus unable to complete his work. His successor, Rev. Clemente, continued the work he had begun.
On December 8, 1895, the grotto was consecrated with "great ceremony and with numerous participation from the clergy and believers" from near and far. An artfully carved life-size wooden statue of the Virgin Mary and a figure of Bernadette were placed in the grotto. They come from the Munich studio Riesenhuber and are said to have cost a total of about 500 gold marks at the time.

Source: Excerpts from information board

Translated by Google •

Karottencity 🎱

July 16, 2025

Creation of the Lourdes Grotto.

Pastor Georg Schraml, who had been pastor in Utzenhofen since 1891, conceived the plan to build a Lourdes Grotto similar to the Lourdes Grotto in France. He felt it was important to win over many believers to this cause. Since the apparition in Lourdes held something special for ordinary people, but since hardly anyone at the end of the 19th century had the opportunity to visit the apparition site, he saw it as his duty to create a similar environment in the community.

[Source: Information board at the grotto]

Translated by Google •

Naturpark Hirschwald

May 25, 2021

The Lourdes grotto near Utzenhofen was inaugurated in 1895 on the initiative of the local pastor. At that time there was great enthusiasm for the Lourdes pilgrimage in France, but only those of the local population would be able to afford at least this long journey. So they started to offer a local "substitute" in the rock formation previously known as the "Goashöhle", which had probably been used to shelter goats. A statue of the Virgin Mary was erected, next to one of Bernadette.
It is also interesting that at that time the forest in front of the grotto was cut down so that the people of Utzenhofen had a clear view of the Lourdes grotto from the village. In the meantime the forest has grown up again and you have to make the effort to go up the Way of the Cross. For those who are not so good on foot, there is also a road up from Utzenhofen.

Translated by Google •

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Elevation 520 m

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Saturday 25 October

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Location: Upper Palatinate, Bavaria, Germany

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Lourdes Grotto

1. View of Kastl Abbey – Kastl Monastery Castle loop from Kastl

2. Bat Tower on the Lauterach – Kastl Monastery Castle loop from Utzenhofen

3. Kastl Monastery Castle – Bat Tower on the Lauterach loop from Kastl

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