The best running trails around Zorge

The rather simple bell tower is reached via stairs and sits perched a little above the town. Unfortunately, most photos show something different.

If I haven't miscounted, there are only 193 steps to the top. Once you reach the top, you're rewarded with a beautiful view of the valley – whatever the weather. Best of all, it rings and illuminates the entire valley with its sound.

Beautiful historic building. I wonder if a tour is possible... 🤷

Great place as a reminder of the history of the border between FRG and GDR.

Nice to see what nature looks like in St.

a very nice view

2022: The view of the bell tower high above Zorge, the landmark of this village belonging to the municipality of Walkenried in the Harz Mountains, is once again unobstructed after a lengthy period of being enclosed in scaffolding. The restoration of the structure, built more than 150 years ago, has been completed. Wood rot and wood-boring insects, which had been identified during a safety inspection in 2019 and caused considerable concern, have disappeared. The tower, which has been part of the Braunschweig Cultural Heritage Foundation's assets since 1934, shines like new again in the bright spring sunshine. The timber-framed building dates back to 1853 and was presumably built according to plans by the Braunschweig court architect Carl Theodor Ottmer. The structure is considered a defining feature of the townscape and is a protected individual monument. During the restoration of the bell tower, it was also discovered that air pockets in the cast iron of the large bell had already begun to rust. It, too, had to be replaced. The parish decided, however, not to commission a new bell, but to purchase a "used" one from Finland. The parish in Tikkurila, a few kilometers north of Helsinki's city center, had commissioned the Pfundner bell foundry in Vienna in 1969 to cast a set of bells for their newly constructed bell tower. However, in December 2012, the church was demolished and replaced with a new building. This rendered the cast bell redundant. A collector stored the large bell until it found its new home in Zorge. The renovation of the bell tower proved extremely difficult. The building materials could not be transported up the only access route, a narrow footpath with 190 steps. And the bronze bell from Finland was even more challenging. The solution to the transport difficulties was ultimately a specially constructed cable car. It bridged a distance of 130 meters and a difference in altitude of 60 meters. Source: https://www.der-loewe.info/zorges-glockenturm-glaenzt-wieder-in-der-fruehlingssonne

Like many other Harz rivers, the Zorge is formed by the confluence of two important source rivers. In the case of the Zorge, these two rivers are the Sprakelbach, which rises south of Braunlage, and the Wolfsbach, whose source area is located northwest of Hohegeiß. In the town of Zorge, these two streams join north of the Bartholomäus Church at a height of around 345 meters above sea level. As it passes through the town of the same name, the Zorge absorbs numerous other streams, including the Steigerwasser, the Eisbach, the Dorenbach and the Illigesbach. The wild mountain river, which is not slowed down by any dams, leaves the Harz beyond Zorge. It now turns southeast and flows towards the town of Ellrich. Here the river enters the South Harz karst landscape. In the town area, the Zorge is also supplemented by the water of the Rosenbach. The important tributary Wieda flows into the Zorge near Woffleben. Other major tributaries are the Sülze, which flows into the Zorge near Cleysingen, northwest of Woffleben, and the Behre, which flows from Ilfeld and flows into the Zorge in Niedersachswerfen. This in turn turns south here and crosses the district town of Nordhausen. Beyond this town, the Leimbach flows into the Zorge and a few hundred meters before it flows into the Helme, the river takes in the water from the Krummbach. This point is around 35 kilometers from the junction of the Sprakelbach and Wolfsbach at a height of around 160 meters above sea level. On the way from the Upper Harz to the Goldene Aue, the landscape around the river changes considerably. In many places the Zorge is accompanied by paths and roads, but unfortunately there is no continuous hiking trail along the river bank. Source: https://www.harzlife.de/info/zorge.html