Ottendorf Circular Route

We invite you to a "taster" hike on the Ottendorf Circular Route! At each station, you will find a nicely carved information board with details about village life. The lime tree is the symbol of Ottendorf, planted by farmer Schmitt, as you might guess. The war memorial commemorates the villagers who fell in the First World War. Ottendorf was first mentioned in a document with tax claims to the Saxon lords: created on September 12, 1446. The small nearby homestead is called the "Mäuseburg" - for whatever reason. Here lives the wood carver Johannes Kretzschmar, who carved the signs of the circular route. He always welcomes visitors to his demonstration workshop (best on Thursdays)! Eilas Hesse, the son of the village miller, told the story of the liar baron over 300 years ago, who became known in literature; the Pietzschmühle still stands today. If you leave the circular route here and walk about half an hour down towards the valley, you will come to Arnstein, the Ottendorf robber castle. In the 15th century, the robber knights of the Bergen von der Duba lived here. You can still find many rock carvings and traces of settlement! The Heede (Heide) gate is said to be located on one of the "grinding paths" - smugglers were still active here in the 19th century. Today, the "Ottendorfer Hütte" is located here, a rustic tavern and hostel. Stop by; you might be lucky and the popular "Ottendorfer Heedebraten" will be on offer. A cozy resting place invites you to linger. You have a nice view over our village here. The station "Abgesang" is at the end of the circular route and was also at the end of the lives of the Ottendorf villagers - here the dead were "sung out".