Herzberg am Harz comprises of five local villages and is actually considered a health resort.
Herzberg proper dates back to around the mid 12th century and wouldn’t be complete without its own castle and old church.
Schloss Herzberg, built in 1510, has a tin figure museum with many historical exhibits on the surrounding forest and the castle itself. And the Parish Church Nicolai was rebuilt in 1845 after the original was destroyed.
Now lets walk through each of Herzberg’s other districts…
The Lonau district is the least populated with only about 350 residents and more famous for its camping and golf facilities. It’s also a very quiet place, since most of the village’s traffic goes away from it. All the more better to enjoy the natural countryside here, I’d say, like the Lonauer Waterfall. There’s also the Hanskühnenburg (with an observation tower) in the nature park with plenty of walking paths and beautiful rock formations.
The neighborhood of Sieber is only slightly bigger in terms of population but unique and retains a rural feel. Once a mining town, it’s not uncommon to see sheep herds crossing the small village roads on your way to the village park and swimming pool.
Pöhlde has been inhabited since the 2nd century A.D. and has the ruins of what is called a fleeing castle (used in times of war and hiding from invaders) with an old monastic church that just shouldn’t be missed.
It’s in Pöhlde where you’re going to find the infamous Rhumequelle, one of the largest water springs in the world.
The most interesting of all the villages, however, is Scharzfeld. It’s here where you’ll find the 10th century ruins of the Scharzfeld Castle, destroyed in 1761. The ruins of the castle are romantic and the view of the forest below is dazzling.
For ruins that date back even further, there’s the Scharzfelder Steinkirche, a cave from prehistoric times that was converted into a church and cemetery at the end of the 8th century and used until 1586.
For more cave exploration, head over to the Scharzfeld’s Horn Cave with beautiful natural rock formations.
You can get a grand view of Scharzfeld from what is known as the Großer Knollen (it translates to “large tubers” and sounds MUCH better in German). It’s an observation tower on top of one of the mountains with a little cafe at the top. Imagine lunching with THAT view!
