Finsteres Loch Gorge – Knöpfelstaler Pond loop from Stützerbach

Hiking trails & Routes

Ilm-Kreis

Stützerbach

Finsteres Loch Gorge – Knöpfelstaler Pond loop from Stützerbach

Easy

4.7

(44)

140

hikers

Finsteres Loch Gorge – Knöpfelstaler Pond loop from Stützerbach

01:06

3.71km

110m

Hiking

Easy hike. Great for any fitness level. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is right next to a parking lot.

Last updated: August 6, 2026

Tips

Your route passes through a protected area

Please check local regulations for:

Naturpark Thüringer Wald

Waypoints

Start point

Parking

Get Directions

826 m

Forest Trail in Naturpark Thüringer Wald

Highlight • Trail

Beautiful hiking trail, easy to walk.

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Tip by

1.04 km

Finsteres Loch Gorge

Highlight • Gorge

great spot to hike

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1.31 km

Finsteres Loch Wooden Bridge and Waterfall (Touringen Stamp Station 145)

Highlight • Bridge

Shortly before Stuetzerbach you will find a fairy-tale gorge, which gained notoriety through Goethe's poem "Ilmenau". In 1783 a large, nocturnal hunting camp took place here. Today there is a …

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1.50 km

Stamp 145 — Dark Hole

Highlight • Gorge

Here you feel like you're in a jungle. A great place.

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1.89 km

Knöpfelstaler Pond

Highlight • Lake

Before continuing on the romantic part of the Goetheweg in the Ilmkreis, this place offers a place full of peace and harmony.

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1.92 km

Forest pond in Naturpark Thüringer Wald

Highlight • Lake

Beautiful pond and certainly a good place for a little break.

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3.06 km

Ochsenwiese on the Goethe Trail

Highlight • Trail

The section of the Goethe hiking trail on the edge of the Ochsenwiese is very idyllic.

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3.71 km

End point

Parking

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

2.67 km

950 m

< 100 m

Surfaces

2.95 km

636 m

< 100 m

Elevation

Nothing selected – click and drag below to see the stats for a specific part of the route.

Highest point (710 m)

Lowest point (600 m)

Weather

Thursday 8 October

8°C

4°C

96 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 32.0 km/h

to get more detailed weather forecasts along your route

Comments

August 16, 2023,Finsteres Loch vom Auerhahn 💦🐓

As a final tour, we went into an almost fairytale gorge that became famous through Goethe's poem "Ilmenau". In 1783 a large nightly hunting camp took place here. Today a wooden bridge leads over a small waterfall. If you stand there and look up, you can almost see trolls and goblins rampaging between the moss-covered rocks. Goethe's handwritten poem can …

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October 1, 2023,2023_10_01 Wanderung Ab Auerhahn > Finsteres Loch > Knöpfelstaler Teich

A mini hike to relax and prepare for something big. That was actually a reminder of the old Ilmenau times.

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March 27, 2025,Finsteres Loch – Knöpfelstaler Teich Runde von Stützerbach ST 146

The trail is easy and very quiet. The forest, however, looks terrible; many deforested areas and everything is left lying around. But there are plenty of places to sit along the trail.

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