In the Upper Palatinate Forest, near the Czech border, the small town of Friedenfels lies in the Steinwald nature park. This was the first destination to be awarded the newly created "Natural Experience Village in Bavaria" certificate. This is a clear indication that Bavaria has much more natural experience potential than it appears at first glance – which is usually focused on the Bavarian Alps region – and that natural paradises can be found off the beaten tourist path, such as the border region with Czechia, with its areas in the Bavarian and Upper Palatinate forests. This area is made accessible for sustainable tourism, among other things, by the "Goldsteig Quality Trail", one of the top long-distance hiking trails in Germany, which stretches for over 660 kilometers from Marktredwitz to Passau.
Friedenfels
The Naturerlebnisdorf Friedenfels with its 1300 inhabitants is located on the sunny slope of the Steinwald, the second smallest nature park in Bavaria, south of Tirschenreuth in the Upper Palatinate Forest. Well-marked cycling and hiking trails to many viewpoints, fantastic rock formations and meadows make Friedenfels an outdoor paradise. Here, everyone agrees on what they don't want: mass tourism, hustle and bustle, noise and nature as a commodity. Instead, value is placed on reflection, recreation, peace and merging with the natural environment. This commitment is the basis of the certificate, together with the natural "equipment", the forest streams that flow into Waldnaab, Ilz and Regen, the rugged granite and basalt rocks that look as if they were raised by giants in a sudden fit, the almost-wilderness and the open meadows that create an impressive sense of space. In addition, the building, brewing and inn culture complete the picturesque picture. For example, the Zoigl, a very special beer that is still produced in citizen or municipal breweries according to traditional methods in some places, is known far beyond the region.
Certificate: Naturerlebnisdorf
The official "Naturerlebnisdorf" certificate is the "pedantic" "Bergsteigerdorf" in Germany and Austria. It always involves a balanced relationship between the needs of nature, culture and tourism. The two organizations Naturfreunde und Wanderverband Bayern e.V. are the certifying bodies in Bavaria, which were created as a result of a political initiative in the Bavarian Landtag.
The Goldsteig, "Quality Hiking Trail Germany"
On the "green roof of Europe". The Goldsteig can also boast superlatives, it runs through the largest contiguous mid-mountain range forest area in Europe. From Marktredwitz in the Fichtelgebirge to Passau at the confluence of Ilz, Inn and Danube, the Goldsteig, not in a straight line but winding like a snake, follows its course. The motto is: "The journey is the destination". And this path, which is not exactly a straight path and extends all the way to Bohemia, offers a wealth of nature. This earned it the "Quality Hiking Trail" certificate, of which there are only a few in Germany.
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Garden dormouse -
Lynx -
Buzzard
Five nature parks and two national parks are visited, traversed or hiked, and 660 kilometers are covered. If you include the access roads and connections, there are more than two thousand.
His name has a historical reference: from the Danube to Bohemia, there was once a lucrative trade route, the "golden Steig", after which the hiking trail and also the Chamer Milchwirtschaftsbetrieb Goldsteig are named. The path, which is divided into numerous stages, also takes into account the condition and preferences of the hikers. There is a summit route (North variant) with more than a dozen summit crossings, as well as a slightly more relaxed south variant over gentle meadows and slopes, both of which meet again in Passau.
The Milchwirtschaftsbetrieb Goldsteig
The operation, which is committed to sustainable dairy farming, consists of four producer cooperatives, in which around 3,100 agricultural businesses have joined. They come primarily from Upper Bavaria, but also from neighboring Czechia. The cross-border cooperation provides the milk, from which annually around 102,300 tons are processed into products such as butter and various types of cheese and distributed throughout the European Union.
The cooperative organizational form guarantees the close connection of the dairy to the region and its natural resources. Not only the production, but also all the entrepreneurial decisions, the marketing and the commitment to sustainability are based on the participation of the more than 3,000 organized farmers.
https://friedenfels.de/
https://www.natur-nachhaltig-erfahren.de/natur-erleben/6-natur-pur-steinwald-teil-1/)
https://www.wanderbares-deutschland.de/wege/alle-wege/goldsteig-von-marktredwitz-bis-passau-290ff03ed1
https://www.goldsteig.de
