Tom`s travels: Hike from Halberstadt to Neinstedt (16/09/2023)

On another September weekend, I took the chance of a nice forecasted sunny day and decided to head southwest towards the Harz region for some hiking. I reached the town of Halberstadt with a direct train and switched to a local one that brought me to the Halberstadt-Spiegelsberge station where I would start my hike. I headed south of the city and eventually reached a forested area. Here a short walk brought me to a curious sandstone formation, jutting out of the trees, known as the Fünffingerfelsen. It consists of five 10-meter-high stone columns, four of which close together and the fifth separated from the rest. Once on top, I admire the nice view of the surrounding forest, and the countryside with the town of Halberstadt beyond. From there, a short walk brought me to the next sandstone formation, Klusfelsen. Here, unlike the other rock formations, there were manmade caves some of which date to prehistoric times. After admiring the panorama from that spot too I then continued on my hike, heading westwards through the forest. As I walked on I then came across a place called Meding Schanze, where a WWI western front trench was reconstructed on-site to show visitors what it was like. A few kilometers later across open fields, I then reached the town of Langenstein. The main feature, and an interesting and peculiar one at that, was the cave dwellings scattered a little around town but mostly concentrated on Schäferberg Street. This consists of a series of caves dug out into the rock around the mid-1850s and turned into livable dwellings which were used until the 20th century. Some of those dwellings had been restored and can now be visited with decor and furniture from the time. After that nice stop, I continued on through town and reached then the small hill to the south of it, on top of which was another cave dwelling, this one from the 18th century. Around it were some other nice rock formations as well as a great viewpoint from the highest point of the hill. From here I then continued on my hike heading southeast through hilly terrain. Looking south, and west I could see the Harz mountains, with the Brocken, the highest mountain in clear sight. After a bit, I reached another sandstone formation, the Hoppelberg, from where I had another great view, also looking northwards towards Halberstadt. Moving on I reached the village of Börnecke with at its center the church of St Peter. The walk then carried me through some open fields and under the highway to reach the next town, Westerhausen. Here I walked through town, passing by the nice church of St Stephen, with its nice westwerk and two baroque spires. As I had drunk most of my water I tried looking for a fountain, but as is typical in Germany, I couldn't find any. I then decided to ask an old lady playing with her granddaughter outside her house and she gladly refilled it from her garden hose. I thanked them and carried on my walk. The trail continued southwards through nice open fields with a view of the Harz mountains. I passed through the town of Warnstedt and shortly after reached the Teufelsmauerstieg, a trail heading west to east and following a semi-intermittent natural hard sandstone rock formation in a straight line like a wall. I followed the nice sections of rocks with often views both toward the south and north. Among the rocky formations was also a herd of sheep and goats snacking on tall long dry grass. Towards the last part of the trail, the rocks became larger and taller giving the real impression of a solid wall, and with jutting points like the devil's fingers, hence the name. Behind it I also had a nice view from above of the town of Weddersleben. This last part was also the only part so far where there were other people as well; visitors who had parked the car nearby and walked up there. This is probably why this was also the only section with fences and ropes along the trail to keep people from heading or climbing on the rocks. Finally, after a last stretch, I reached the town of Neinstedt from where I was able to take my train back to Berlin.