The best MTB trails around Judenbach

At the Schildwiese rest stop, there is a very special piece of Rennsteig history: a small customs house that is reminiscent of the former division of Germany. It was created by Günther Schmidt from Spechtsbrunn. With a lot of humor, he has designed a place here that recalls the time when the Rennsteig was actually divided by the border. Today, you can hike here without any passport control.

At the Nature Park Information Center „Kalte Küche“ on the Rennsteig, not only three nature parks meet, but also the three districts of Sonneberg, Kronach and Saalfeld/Rudolstadt. Here you will find information about the landscape, crafts and German-German history, as well as numerous free hiking maps. If you need a break, you can refresh yourself at the Rennsteig snack bar with small meals, drinks, coffee and cake. Opening hours: April to October: Tuesday to Friday 10 am - 4 pm, Saturday and Sunday 11 am - 4 pm. November to March: Tuesday to Friday 10 am - 3:30 pm. Monday is a rest day.

A beautifully carved hiking boot and the wooden Rennsteig "R" invite you to rest on this bench.

Through the construction of the GDR border facilities in 1962, the residents of Kleinlichtenhain found themselves in the curious situation of having to live in no man's land between the two German states. The Thuringian village with three houses and twenty inhabitants officially belonged to the GDR. However, because it was located in the narrow "Kleintettauer Winkel", which protruded like a spur into Bavarian territory, it was separated from GDR territory by the newly created death strip. The GDR citizens of Kleinlichtenhain could move freely to the West, but there was no way to get into the "Eastern Zone". The memorial with information boards and documentary photos commemorates this unusual situation.

During the Rennsteig Church Day on June 20, 2009, the memorial at Schildwiese was inaugurated. The metal cross, over four meters high, was designed by the builders from original parts of the old border fence. In front of it, a plaque on a stone block commemorates the people who died in this section of the inner-German border, and all victims of the wall and barbed wire during the German division.

The "Zollhaus" at the Rennsteig border monument is not a restored historical building. The hut was erected and equipped in autumn 2016 by the Frankenwaldverein Kleintettau. It is intended to commemorate the vibrant customs history of this border region and the era of German division. The monument also includes a historical border stone and two posts with the coats of arms of the Free State of Bavaria and the district of Kronach on one side, and the Free State of Thuringia and the district of Saalfeld-Rudolstadt on the other.

Remains of the border facilities in Heinersdorf

The historic customs house on the border between Bavaria and Thuringia near Kleintettau (Markt Tettau) is a reconstructed historic customs station. It is located directly on the legendary Rennsteig hiking trail on the so-called Schildwiese. Today, the small building serves as a historical site and border memorial, commemorating the decades-long inner-German division.