ゲッティンゲンの山小屋＆キャビン・トップ20

Today we rode the Umschwang ⛰️ by bike 🚴🏻🚴🏾‍♀️. 😉😂 And that wasn't primarily due to the fact that we now ride e-bikes. The main reason was that many, many years ago, as simple occasional cyclists, we rode the 🚴🏾‍♀️ from Witzenhausen via Kleinalmerode and the Umschwang to Kassel. Then we rigorously avoided the route for decades because of the extremely unfriendly traffic (cars, trucks, motorcycles). Today, on June 21, 2025, we seized the opportunity. The road from Kleinalmerode via the Umschwang to Nieste has recently been closed for months, just before Nieste (see https://mobil.hessen.de/presse/l-3237-nieste-grossbaustelle-in-der-ortsdurchfahrt). However, with the 🚴🏾‍♀️ through the Niester Endschlagsiedlung, this was no problem at all. From Kleinalmerode onwards, we had the road, similar to a two-lane cycle path, to ourselves. We only encountered other cyclists who were just as happy about this experience as we were and who were truly enjoying the truly beautiful landscape in the most beautiful, and up to this point still pleasant, temperatures and weather. Everything to the right and left was lush green. And on the slopes, mostly to the right of the road, in many places everything was covered with wild, pink to purple flowering foxgloves. And the best part: once we reached the 450m elevation, the descent seemed to flow naturally. The sporty racing cyclists we encountered had a harder time—by design. We'll certainly be taking advantage of the road closure, which will last until at least the end of 2025, if not until next spring, at least once this summer and fall, and we can only recommend it to all other cyclists. Especially if they shy away from the otherwise prevalent traffic there like we do, and the devil shy away from holy water.🖐️

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umschwang?wprov=sfla1

From the old town of Hann. Münden, the Tillyschanze ski jump is easily accessible via a zigzag path. Up there on the Lower Saxony-Hesse border, there's a lovely beer garden. There's a wedding room at the Tillyschanze ski jump, and many couples have immortalized themselves with heart-shaped memorials in the garden.

The hut offers a nice resting place and a beautiful view on the upper floor.

State border between Hesse & Lower Saxony

Just a few meters from the Tillyschanzen tower - and yet already on Hessian territory - lies the restaurant, which has been a popular destination for hikers, tourists and locals for decades. During the corona-related break and a simultaneous change of ownership, the entire area was completely renovated and redesigned. The previous operator, Reinhold Heck, who retired in autumn 2020, always came up with something special to offer visitors: In the past there were even rock concerts and techno parties high above the roofs of the city, as well as medieval activities, small Christmas markets and poetry readings. Nowadays, the Tillyschanze Protection and Promotion Association organizes numerous events throughout the year, such as summer festivals and music events, which attract many visitors. Source: https://tillyschanze.de/gaststaette/

Visitors cannot miss the small square house, even just visually. It stands right next to the bridge that leads to the popular tourist destination, and shines out at visitors in the strong colors of black, red and yellow. "The house is intended to draw attention to a special feature," explains Bernhard Ruschinski, who built and painted the house, "the state border between Lower Saxony and Hesse." The 73-year-old is a member of the Tillyschanze Protection and Promotion Association, which has been working for years to preserve and renovate the observation tower and the zigzag path that leads directly up the mountain from Münden. An adult can comfortably stand in the small house and turn around on their own axis. The tapered entrance is on the side of the restaurant. Under the roof, which is covered with weatherproof roofing felt, hangs a sign reading "Tillyschanze border checkpoint." "It is built entirely from old pallets," says Ruschinski. The idea for the checkpoint came from the new owner of the "Waldgaststätte Tillyschanze" restaurant, Thomas Probek. "He asked me if it could be built." This was no problem for the pensioner, who used to work as a carpenter. "I am a technical employee in the support association," he explains with a wink. Source: https://www.hna.de/lokales/hann-muenden/hann-muenden-ort60343/neues-grenzerhaeuschen-an-der-tillyschanze-in-hann-muenden-eingeweiht-91640837.html

The state border between Hesse and Lower Saxony, rarely so beautifully designed.