The left main upper reaches of the Haidbrunnengraben of the Tiefgraben arise in the Erlenstegener Forst, an unincorporated area in the central Franconian district of Erlangen-Höchstadt, south of Heroldsberg from a series of spring streams that flow on the southern slope of the Haidberg, the highest elevation of the Erlenstegener Forest (391 m above sea level ) arise from. After the junction of the spring streams, the creek runs south-east of the Haidberg, first in a southerly and later in a south-westerly direction to the A 3. After crossing under the autobahn, west of Weißensee, the body of water is called the Tiefgraben. From then on, the stream meanders gently through an alluvial forest covered with oaks, alders and bird cherries on a sandy, swampy valley floor.[3] To the south of the animal shelter, now within Nuremberg's city limits, it joins the right-hand branch upper course, the Kühgraben.
The Kühgraben rises not far from the source of the Haidbrunnengraben, southwest of the Haidberg, and runs mainly in a southerly direction until it meets the A3. There it flows a bit in a south-easterly direction, parallel to the autobahn, only to cross under it after a change of direction and flow in a south-westerly direction to the animal shelter. There it flows south and empties into the deep ditch.
After joining the Kühgraben, the Tiefgraben flows through the grounds of the Erlenstegen shooting range in a westerly direction and from there to the south. Now the creek crosses the former Ringbahn and crosses under it together with a hiking trail at a stone bridge. There the deep ditch suddenly changed its face. The valley narrows, the flanks of the valley become steeper, the little brook winds strongly and leaves a narrow notch in the hard Burg sandstone.[4] The deep ditch then flows through the area of the Naturgartenbad, which it also feeds, from then on it only rarely comes to light, mostly in a channeled bed, past the Scheurl'sches Schloss manor, crosses under the federal road 14 (Erlenstegenstraße) and the Nuremberg-Cheb railway line flows southeast of Nuremberg-Erlenstegen station into the Pegnitz.