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Natural Monuments

Obernkirchen Sandstone Quarries

Natural Monuments

Obernkirchen Sandstone Quarries

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Obernkirchen Sandstone Quarries

Recommended by 151 hikers out of 156

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Location: Stadthagen, Landkreis Schaumburg, Lower Saxony, Germany

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Best Hikes to Obernkirchen Sandstone Quarries

4.8

(52)

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1. Gorge to the Small Quarry – Fox Oak Rest Area loop from Kathrinhagen

4.07km

01:03

20m

Easy hike. Great for any fitness level. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Easy

4.7

(30)

148

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2. Liethstollen Entrance – Mühlenbach Firefighting Pond loop from Sülbeck

14.7km

04:05

270m

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

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Moderate

4.8

(26)

118

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3. Mühlenbach Firefighting Pond loop from Kathrinhagen

13.9km

03:50

230m

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

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Moderate

Tips

Moonbeam🌜

December 18, 2021

Where strong mountain ranges rise from the North German lowlands for the first time, the Obernkirchen sandstone quarries are located four kilometers east of Obernkirchen and six kilometers south of Stadthagen. Here, on the Bückeberg plateau, sandstone has been extracted from one of the oldest active quarries in the world for 1,000 years and is supplied to the whole of Europe.

While initially the extraction and preparation of the raw blocks was largely done using muscle power and the simplest tools, the first machines were used in the quarry as industrialization progressed. Hand hammer drills or wedge hole hammers were used to drill numerous drill holes or wedge holes into the rock so that the contours of the block were already predetermined. These rows of drill holes weaken the rock so that it can be separated by driving in wedges, working with crowbars or blasting with black powder. After the raw blocks have been released from the rock formation in this way, they are wrapped in chains and lifted out of the high wall by a derrick crane.

Since the 1980s, specially equipped wheel loaders have been used to extract the sandstone. They drive a breaking mandrel between the natural layers and hydraulically release the sandstone from the mountain in the form of blocks. The blocks extracted in this way are prepared for further processing with a block saw in the quarry.
Source: obernkirchener-sandstein.de/de/steinbruch

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Holger

February 4, 2022

Mining history to experience and touch!

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Wandertourist

May 10, 2025

Obernkirchen sandstone is among the highest quality sandstones in Germany. Cologne Cathedral was partially built with this sandstone.

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Elevation 390 m

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Wednesday 12 November

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Max wind speed: 17.0 km/h

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See hikes here

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Location: Stadthagen, Landkreis Schaumburg, Lower Saxony, Germany

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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Gorge to the Small Quarry

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Obernkirchen Sandstone Quarry Ruins

Kneipp Basin at the Sulphur Spring

Naturerlebnispfad Brandshof

View of Schaumburg Castle

View of the Weser Uplands

Glückaufstollen

Obernkirchen Sandstone Quarries

1. Gorge to the Small Quarry – Fox Oak Rest Area loop from Kathrinhagen

2. Liethstollen Entrance – Mühlenbach Firefighting Pond loop from Sülbeck

3. Mühlenbach Firefighting Pond loop from Kathrinhagen

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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