Top 12 Gorges around Hameln

Good footwear and sure-footedness are required, especially when it is damp... But the journey is worth it.

The streams of the Ith give off their water to the west via the Ilse, Remte and Lenne into the Weser and to the east via the Saale into the Leine. The low mountain range has the shape of a seahorse. The northern area, which features the outline of an animal's head, is popularly known as the Ith Head. The Ith is a tourist attraction, especially for hikers, climbers and glider pilots. The Ith ridge path attracts many hikers, especially during the spring blooming season, because of the large numbers of anemones and corydalis. Several hiking trails are well marked on the Ithhöhen. The Bisperode-Holzen section of the E11 European long-distance path runs over the Ithkamm. Some of the numerous and striking rock formations (“cliffs”) along the Ith crest are open for climbing. With the Lüerdissen cliffs, which are up to 30 meters high, and many other rocks, the Ith is considered the most popular climbing area in Lower Saxony. Almost all rocks are named; there is, for example, "Adam and Eve", the "Camel", the "Devil's Kitchen", a "Monk Stone", the "Toad Head", the "Garwindelstein" and many others. Source: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ith

It was the year 1284. As every year, there had been a series of festive days with boisterous activity in Hamelin around St. John's Day. Moving out and moving, especially of young people and children, were the order of the day. In the darkness, the St. John's fires blazed up on the heights of the surrounding mountains. Stimulated by the festivities of the preceding St. John's Day, a large group of children made their way to Ith, just under two miles away, on June 26th in the most beautiful summer weather. Massive and rugged, the massif of the Fahnenstein juts out into the plain on the northern Ith. According to ancient custom, a midsummer bonfire was burned at its height every year, and the youth of Hamelin wanted to be there. With happy playing and singing, we left Hamelin's Easter Gate. A minstrel, a piper, led the long procession of 130 children. The Cobbenberg, as this Ithhöhe is called in the oldest documents, was reached in good time towards evening. At the foot of the Fahnenstein, halfway up the Cobbenberg, lies the eerie devil's kitchen, a formerly swampy rock basin in the middle of steep cliffs. Tradition has it that this place was an old Germanic place of worship and sacrifice. The devil's kitchen at the foot of the flag stone now particularly attracted the leader of the children. Like all members of his guild, he was still excluded from the church and therefore stuck to the old beliefs. The devil's kitchen was dangerous terrain, due to the swamp basin and the steep cliffs from which large blocks had detached over time and today have completely filled the swamp hole. Mysterious mists rose from the bottom, will-o'-the-wisps floated to and fro. As dusk fell, the children feared spooks and ghosts. As if by magic, they pressed forward. As the foremost sank into the swamp, panic set in, and instead of realizing the danger and turning back, those who stayed behind became utterly shy. Partly driven by superstitions, partly in an effort to save their comrades, they pressed forward and thus to perdition. So the sump of the devil's kitchen on the slope of the Cobbenberg, just under two miles east of Hamelin, became the grave of the 130 Hamelin children. https://www.mystic-culture.de/kultplatz/ith/teufelskueche/rattenfaengersage.html

A really worthwhile excursion, with many rugged cliffs. Highly recommended. And for those who don't like to walk on the edge, the official route runs further inland. You don't need to be afraid of heights here.

At www.ith-sagen.de you can listen to the legends of the Teufelsküche in a podcast. We like that.

impressive rocks and steep stairs

Refuge for animals and plants! Here is something else from the network: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C3%B6hlengebiet_im_Kleinen_Deister

Beautiful rock formations with caves. In a cave you can look into it but it is closed with bars.