Ore Mountains start season for cyclists

Families and recreational athletes can now once again explore the Ore Mountains by mountain bike on special tours. This weekend, the 140-kilometre-long Blockline between Altenberg, Holzhau and Seiffen is not the only place to do so. The Stoneman Miriquidi is also back with routes on both sides of the Saxon-Czech border. The start of the new season was planned for both offers this Friday - the season lasts into the fall, as the Erzgebirge Tourism Association announced. The bike park in Schöneck in Vogtland with its five trails has also been open again for a few weeks.

The trails are also reportedly attracting visitors with new features. For example, shuttles are offered for the Stoneman Miriquidi at weekends in Oberwiesenthal and on the Rabenberg. The route can also be ridden as a guided tour. This is also available for the road bike version - even with celebrity support from former professional cyclists Olaf Ludwig and Mario Kummer in June.

The Stoneman Miriquidi will enter its eleventh season in 2024. It is a 162-kilometre circuit through the Ore Mountains on the Saxon and Bohemian sides: from Oberwiesenthal with the Fichtelberg, continuing on the Czech side via Klinovec (Keilberg), Plesivec (Pleßberg) and Blatensky vrch (Plattenberg) to the Auersberg via the Rabenberg trail center, the Markersbach dam, the Scheibenberg and Pöhlberg to Bärenstein and back to Oberwiesenthal. The riders have to overcome 4400 meters of altitude - in one, two or three days, depending on time and fitness. Since 2018, there has also been a road version for racing cyclists with almost 290 kilometers.

The Blockline in the Osterzgebirge is more geared towards families. There are 15 stages with a length of 140 kilometers and 2750 meters of altitude difference. There are also numerous leisure activities along the route, such as summer toboggan runs, playgrounds, museums and castles. According to the Erzgebirge Tourism Association, the route is also ideal for team outings with colleagues.

With the offers for cyclists, the region wants to score more points as a travel and excursion destination all year round and become less dependent on winter sports tourism. According to the tourism association, there were officially around 1450 riders on the Blockline last year, while the Stoneman Miriquidi recorded almost 3000 mountain bikers. However, registration is not compulsory, so the actual number of cyclists on these routes is higher.

However, the return of frost and snow at the start of the season is causing obstructions on some sections of the Stoneman between Plattenberg and Fichtelberg. "The routes are snow-covered in places and the trails at Plešivec (Pleßberg) and Klínovec (Keilberg) are not yet passable," explained Doreen Burgold from the Erzgebirge Tourism Association. For all starters on the opening weekend, there is therefore a winter version with routing via the road in the critical areas.

Hikers can also lace up their boots again and roam the Ore Mountains. The official start of hiking on the Erzgebirge-Vogtland ridge trail is planned for May 1. Guided hikes and festivals are planned in Altenberg, Olbernhau and around the Schwartenberg to mark the opening of the new season. In Altenberg, for example, there will be seven guided tours as well as a family program with live music on the station forecourt, according to the tourism association. The ridge trail runs for almost 290 kilometers from Altenberg in the Osterzgebirge to Vogtland and ends in Blankenstein in Thuringia.