The Schrammsteine are a long, strung-out, very jagged group of rocks in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains located east of Bad Schandau in Saxon Switzerland in eastern Germany. To the north they are bordered by the

Kirnitzsch The Kirnitzsch (German), in Bohemia also called the Kirnischt,Messtischblatt Nr. 86 Hinterhermsdorf, published by the Reichsamt für Landesaufnahme, Landesaufnahme Sachsen 193Digitalised at www.fotothek.de/ref> cz, Křinice, is a right tributa ...

valley, to the south by the Elbe valley and to the east by the

Affensteine The Affensteine are a long chain of deeply fissured rocks in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains that are located east of Bad Schandau in the German region of Saxon Switzerland. They are bounded to the north by the Kirnitzsch valley, to the south b ...

rocks. The high point of the chain lies at over . The

viewing point A scenic viewpoint – also called an observation point, viewpoint, viewing point, vista point, lookout, scenic overlook,These terms are more commonly used in North America. etc. – is an elevated location where people can view scenery (often w ...

on the Schrammsteine lies at a height of .Map Service
of the

BfN The German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (german: Bundesamt für Naturschutz, ''BfN'') is the German government's scientific authority with responsibility for national and international nature conservation. BfN is one of the government' ...

, 1:5,000 series.

Overview

To the west the frontmost ''Torstein'' forms the start of the chain of rocks in the southwest. The rocks then run up to the Schrammstein viewing point, gashed by three, mighty, vertical rock openings, the ''Schrammtoren'' (''Toren'' = gateways or openings in German, ''vorderer'' = before, ''hinterer'' = behind). This is the end of the ''Vordere Schrammsteine''. It is followed by the ''Hinterer Schrammsteine'' that run away in the direction of Schmilka. The solitary

Falkenstein Falkenstein or Falckenstein ("falcons' stone" in German) may refer to: Places Austria * Falkenstein, Lower Austria, a market town in the district of Mistelbach Germany * Falkenstein, Bavaria, a market town in the district of Cham * Falkenst ...

with a height of and the Hoher Torstein at are the most important peaks in the Schrammsteine. The other summits of the rock group are almost exclusively found on the terrace-like massif of the Schrammstein ridge. The Schrammsteine are a much frequented tourist destination; the plateau-like viewing points and the ridge being especially popular. The complex rock massif has much to offer both hikers and climbers with its multitude of trails of various levels of difficulty and its climbing rocks.

Rotkehlchenstiege

The climbing trail known as the Rotkehlchenstiege ("Robin Climb") begins at the northern end of the ''Falkoniergrund'' near

Schmilka Bad Schandau (; hsb, Žandow) is a spa town in Germany, in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district of Saxony. It is situated on the right bank of the Elbe, at the mouth of the valley of the Kirnitzsch and in the area often described as S ...

and runs up the Schrammstein Ridgeway (''Gratweg''). It climbs a height of 150 metres over 286 steps. It is an easy '' klettersteig'' of grade KS1, but has several vertical rock faces.Axel Mothes: ''Der Weg ist das Ziel - ein Streifzug über 50 Steiganlagen der Sächsischen Schweiz. Vol. 1, p. 101. Halle: Stiegenbuchverlag 2005.''

References

External links

More photographs

''Hiking in Saxon Switzerland: Rotkehlchenstiege''

''Rotkehlchenstiege''
{{Authority control Mountains of Saxon Switzerland Rock formations of Saxon Switzerland Bad Schandau