Memorial Stone for Border Victim Fritz Zapf loop from Spechtsbrunn

Hiking trails & Routes

Germany

Thuringia

Memorial Stone for Border Victim Fritz Zapf loop from Spechtsbrunn

Easy

4.4

(109)

309

hikers

Memorial Stone for Border Victim Fritz Zapf loop from Spechtsbrunn

01:23

5.06km

80m

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 17, 2026

Tips

Your route passes through a protected area

Please check local regulations for:

Naturpark Thüringer Wald

Waypoints

Start point

Parking

Get Directions

127 m

Historical panels "Traces of the GDR border"

Highlight • Trail

Good cycling and hiking trails in the footsteps of the old GDR border. Various information boards telling the story.

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378 m

Rest Area at Sinnespfad Altjägermoor

Highlight • Rest Area

a really nice place to rest

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2.57 km

Memorial Stone for Border Victim Fritz Zapf

Highlight • Monument

"Destroyed by targeted fire" at this spot on July 7, 1964, the 37-year-old porcelain former Fritz Zapf from Piesau in Thuringia was killed. DDR border guards Willi K. and Manfred …

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2.59 km

Old Army and Trade Route memorial stone (Touringen stamp no. 323)

Highlight • Historical Site

Touringen combines the fun of hiking with adventure and a sense of discovery. You can hike a total of 430 Touringen stamps, which have been placed on the most beautiful …

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2.67 km

Wildlife Monitoring Camera in Naturpark Thüringer Wald

Highlight • Structure

There is a special notice on the signpost about data protection, stating that photographs are taken here... they are intended to serve the purpose of nature conservation and unintentional photographs of people will be deleted immediately...

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4.38 km

Former Border Guard Company 12 Spechtsbrunn

Highlight • Historical Site

The Spechtsbrunn barracks of the GDR border troops were located in the heavily secured restricted area near the inner-German border. It was built starting in August 1971 and was occupied …

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4.71 km

Wooden bench with carvings 'R' – Thuringian Forest Nature Park

Highlight • Rest Area

A beautifully carved hiking boot and the wooden Rennsteig "R" invite you to rest on this bench.

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5.03 km

Spechtsbrunn Nature Park Information Center with snacks

Highlight • Rest Area

At the so-called Kalten Küche, the provincial road L1150 coming from Gräfenthal meets with the L2659 from Steinbach am Wald and the L1152 from Markt Tettau. From ancient times this …

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5.06 km

End point

Parking

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

4.47 km

281 m

150 m

140 m

Surfaces

2.72 km

1.67 km

541 m

109 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 (660 m)

Weather

Sunday 11 October

11°C

3°C

0 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 9.0 km/h

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Comments

July 18, 2023,Grenzwanderung am Grünen Band bei Spechtsbrunn (Touringen Stempel 321 , 322 , 323)

The following Touringen stamp offices are located on this route:

0.6km - 322 information board at Altjäger Moor
2.7km - 323 memorial stone old military and trade route
5.1km - 321 Nature Park Information Center Spechtsbrunn

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December 15, 2024,❄️ Kleiner Grenzweg ❄️

We didn't have a real mission today... Get in the car and just stop wherever we like. 🤗 Our starting point along the 'Small Border Trail' was near Spechtsbrunn at the Kalten Küche. A wonderful snowy landscape 😍. But also a lot of broken snow. In some places we got nimble feet because one or two treetops just broke off. …

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September 1, 2025,Kleine Grenzwanderung am Grünen Band (Touringen Stempel 321, 322, 323)

After the Lauscha Glassblowers' Trail, we quickly decided to drive to Spechtsbrunn and do the Small Borderland Hike along the Green Belt. The tour starts right on the Green Belt on the Thuringian-Bavarian border. After a few hundred meters, you reach the Altjägermoor, where you have to walk about 30 meters into the moor to get the stamp. The route …

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April 28, 2026,Kleine Grenzwanderung bei Spechtsbrunn 🕹️😎

After reading the book by Kati Naumann, "Was uns erinnern lässt", I was very curious to hike here at the location of the events. Unfortunately, due to forest dieback, it no longer looks as idyllic as described in the book. Nevertheless, I can recommend reading the book, as well as the book by Landolf Scherzer, "Der Grenzgänger".

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July 31, 2025,Kleine Grenzwanderung am Grünen - Start Parkplatz „Kalte Küche“

Very nice "Little Border Hike" with 3 Touringen stamping points 👍🏻 recommended if you need to go quickly 😊

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February 18, 2024,Kleine Grenzwanderung am Grünen Band (Touringen Stempel 321, 322, 323)

Somehow I'm lazy about writing today 🤔
There's not really much to say about the tour...

...I would say yes, just enjoy the pictures - but with the fog, which unfortunately didn't let the sun through, they aren't that great either 🤷‍♀️

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March 19, 2024,Kleine Grenzwanderung am Grünen Band (Touringen Stempel 321, 322, 323)

Short hike around Spechtsbrunn. You can park your car at the Spechtsbrunn nature park information center and Rennsteig snack bar. The first stamp (321) can be found there. We continue past a beautiful bench and (probably) former accommodation for the border company, through Spechtsbrunn up to the old column path to the memorial stone for a border victim. Stamp 323 …

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