The best MTB trails around Ederheim

Niederhaus and Hochhaus Castle Ruins: The masonry of the Niederhaus ruin is alive. Ferns and some endangered flowering plants such as Dyer's Weld grow here, as well as a breeding ground for rare kites and owls. The Edelfreien von Hürnheim built 3 castles in the Kartäusertal valley at the same time. Castle Niederhaus was built as the ancestral seat and occupied around 1236. After the family split into 3 lines, they called themselves "Edle von Hürnheim-Niederhaus" here. The second family branch called themselves "Edle von Hürnheim-Hochhaus" and occupied Hochhaus Castle, located southwest on the opposite mountain spur. The third line – "Edle von Hürnheim-Rauhaus" – occupied Rauhaus Castle above the slope north of Christgarten.

Kloster Christgarten: The settlement of Christgarten has existed since Merovingian times. In the Middle Ages, it included a St. Peter's Chapel, last mentioned in 1692. Nearby, the Counts of Oettingen founded a monastery in 1383, which they handed over to the Carthusian Order. The monastery church was built around 1390. The monastery, which soon became very wealthy, was severely destroyed during the Thirty Years' War and dissolved in 1648. Today, only the monks' choir of the church remains, while the part for laypeople has been almost completely demolished. Little has survived of the monastery itself, apart from a hall-like room south of the choir, whose outer walls are still standing.

The 1,000 mm gauge Härtsfeld Railway from Neresheim to Dillingen/Donau served the Härtsfeld on the eastern Swabian Jura in Baden-Württemberg from 1901 until its closure in 1972. After the closure of the "Schättere", the track facilities were completely dismantled and the vehicles scrapped. In 1984, the "Freundeskreis Schättere" was formed, which emerged a year later as the Härtsfeld-Museumsbahn e.V. (HMB). Original vehicles and some identically constructed vehicles were purchased and restored, tracks and switches were laid, and a museum was established in the former Neresheim station building. On May 16, 1996, the first groundbreaking ceremony for the reconstruction of the first, 3 km long section took place, which was then officially opened on October 20, 2001, on the hundredth birthday of the railway. A second section of approx. 2.6 km to the Härtsfeldsee was built between 2007 and 2021 and officially opened on August 1, 2021. The third section to Dischingen is yet to be built. From June 20 - 21, 2026, the 1,000 mm gauge tank locomotive "RUR"🚂 from the Selfkantbahn narrow-gauge railway museum in Gangelt-Schierwaldenrath was a guest. It was built in 1899 by the Henschel & Sohn locomotive factory in Kassel for the Dürener Dampfstraßenbahn (Düren Steam Tramway). It is one of the few surviving tank steam locomotives developed for inner-city tram operation. After its later conversion to a steam storage locomotive, it served as a works locomotive in the Schoeller paper mill in Birkesdorf before coming to the Selfkantbahn in 1972 as a non-operational exhibit. Its handover to the partner company KLEINBAAN Service of the Dutch narrow-gauge enthusiast Wim Pater in 2013 enabled its complete restoration to its original condition as a fired wet steam locomotive. The RUR is the only surviving steam locomotive of the formerly eight 1,000 mm gauge narrow-gauge railways in the Rhenish Bay and, at 126 years old, is the oldest operational steam locomotive in the Rhineland. It is based at the Selfkantbahn and runs on selected operating days and makes guest appearances at other 1,000 mm gauge museum railways.

Located directly on the forecourt of the castle

Traffic-calmed zone with nice shops

A fantastic highlight of the tour. The path leads from the top, practically through the castle ruins, down to the pond :-)

Wonderful benches with a cross, quiet, great view to the west to Baldern Castle and over the Sechta Valley.

The Baldinger Tor in Nördlingen is one of the five historical city gates and was first mentioned in 1376. It secured the road towards Würzburg and Frankfurt am Main and was part of the medieval city fortifications. The barbican was completed in 1406 by Master Wenzeslaus, and in 1430 a reconstruction took place under the direction of stonemason Conrad Stenglin. Originally, the gate structure resembled the Berger Tor: a rectangular main gate building with an almost square barbican. The tower was five stories high and had a round superstructure with a gun embrasure and a tent roof. During the Thirty Years' War, the gate was damaged, and in 1703 the tower unexpectedly collapsed – presumably due to insufficient repairs. Five people lost their lives.