Hiking in the National Park

Tips

Hiking suggestions and a wealth of knowledge about nature and culture in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains:

Topographische Wanderkarte
(im Maßstab 1:25.000) der Nationalparkregionen in der Sächsisch-Böhmischen Schweiz mit mehrfarbigem Begleitheft

(Topographical Trail Map of the Saxon/Bohemian Switzerland National Park Regions, 1:25,000, with full-colour booklet)

available for 9.60 Euros at ...

your local bookseller
Nationalparkhaus in Bad Schandau
Amselfallbaude and Eishaus information points in the National Park
the Land Survey Office of Saxony: Link to Landesvermessungs-
amt Sachsen

This map shows on one page the entire region of the Saxon Switzerland National Park and broad sections of the neighboring České Švýcarsko ("Bohemian Switzerland") mountains in the Czech
Republic.

The trail network on the map has been compiled with special attention to the conservation
regulations of the park and its core areas, thus contributing to your personal safety as well as the protection of the environment.

ISBN 3-89679-361-6
3rd Edition (2007)

Trail markers in the national park

The national park is at once a place of refuge for the environment and a recreational area for humans. Within it, one can experience largely untouched nature. Therefore, it is permitted to enter the area on trails (Wegegebot).

In the core zone only marked trails may be used.

The trails are physically marked as follows:

Hiking Trails

There are over 400 kilometers of marked and, for the most part, fully developed hiking trails in the national park. On them, one can reach the most beautiful destinations, spectacular panoramas and historic mountain taverns in the national park. They are appropriate for hikers as well as those just out for a walk, and are marked with signs and/or painted trail markers (coloured strokes or dots on white backgrounds).

The colour of a marker represents the type of trail: blue stands for interregional, red for regional, green and yellow for local trails.

In addition to such standard trail markers as these, you may also see the following special markers in the national park area:

	Lehrpfad: Educational trail with specialised informational board (e.g. the Flößersteig - "Raft Path" - in the Kirnitzsch valley)
	Europäischer Fernwanderweg E3 : European long-distance hiking path E3 (Atlanctic - Ardennes - Ore Mountains - Carpathians - Black Sea)
	Malerweg: "The Painter's Path" - 115 kilometers in the footsteps of the Romantics through Saxon/Bohemian Switzerland; the Malerweg is based on a historic standard route from the early 19th Century.

Mountain Paths

In addition to the above, there are 16 kilometers of mountain paths in the national park, marked with green triangles on gray backgrounds. These paths require sure footing and are appropriate only for seasoned mountain hikers.

Bergpfad - Mountain Path (generally difficult path, requires sure footing)

Access to Climbing Spots

In order to make the climbing areas of the national park accessible to mountaineers, special paths to the climbing rocks are signified by special markers:

	Kletterzugang - Climbing Access Route Access path to climbing rocks (there will be no further signs or safety measures after this point)
	Kein Zugang - Trail Closed The path has been closed for conservation reasons.