The route starts from the beautiful and quietly located holiday apartment in Waltershausen. The owner lives on the ground floor and the first floor is furnished as a holiday home. There is a covered area in the garden where the motorcycle can be parked. There is also plenty of room at the apartment for a car with a trailer.
There is a petrol station 500 m away. You can refuel at both the start and the end of the ride.

Just outside Waltershausen you get a beautiful view of the Cumbacher Teiche. A little further on you pass the Hammerteich. The Hammerteich owes its name to an iron hammer mill that stood there in the 17th century. Later a cutting mill was also operated here. Nowadays there is nothing left to see.

Schloss Ehrenstein in Ohrdruf was built between 1550 and 1590 on the remains of an 8th century church. The two-storey building with four wings is one of the most beautiful Renaissance castles in central Germany. Until 1631 it was the residential palace of the Counts of Gleichen. After the city of Ohrdruf became the owner of the castle in the early 1990s, extensive renovation work was carried out. The decorative facades, bay windows and entrance gates designed after the example of Italian masters became visible again and the exhibition spaces did justice to their valuable collections. Outside, a park of approximately 5,800 m² with a Baroque garden was created.
During the devastating fire in November 2013, the east wing with the library, as well as the south and west wings, burned down; soot and fire extinguishing water did the rest. Large parts of the museum were also destroyed, including the collections on the history of the Ohrdruf porcelain and toy industry with its important doll collection and the exhibition on the history of the military training ground. The reconstruction was an enormous challenge for the city
When it opens again on June 8, 2022, the castle will take on a completely new splendor. The extensive renovation and restoration of the almost completely destroyed building was worth it.

Just outside the city is 'Tobiashammer'. After extensive restoration, the waterwheel forge, built more than 500 years ago, is now one of the most valuable industrial monuments. 5 large drop hammers, rolling mills, stamping mills, grinding mills and annealing furnaces, which are still functional, are powered by 4 extra large water wheels. A special attraction is one of the largest steam engines in Europe.

You continue through the beautiful Thuringian Forest over the Grosser Beerberg. This is the highest point in the state of Thuringia.

Next stop is the Bunker Museum. It is hidden and almost perfectly camouflaged in the middle of a spruce forest in the immediate vicinity of the Waldhotel Rennsteighöhe and can be reached via a paved forest path - follow the signs to the Bunkermuseum / Waldhotel Rennsteighöhe! Due to its size and structure, the Bunker Museum can only be visited during guided tours. But it is really worth it.
The Bunker Museum tour offers visitors insight into the recent history of East Germany. While a large number of bunkers were built as combat and protection facilities, this one is a command bunker. Protection against any form of military and warlike actions was therefore essential. The bunker, built during the Cold War and managed and operated by the Ministry of State Security, had state-of-the-art communications technology, its own power supply (NEA), telephone exchange, teleprinter, mobile radio technology and a remote transmitter.

Before or after your visit to the museum you can have a drink at the Waldhotel Rennsteighöhe, which is located on the same site.

You continue your way through the forest to Schleusingen. The place was first mentioned in written sources in 1232. It was in the hands of the county of Henneberg for 300 years. The most important building is the Bertholdsburg built by them.

The food is delicious in Restaurant Teutsche Schule. The Teutsche Schule is an important half-timbered building from 1681. The building has been owned by the city since 2017. Long periods of vacancy had left their mark. After extensive renovation and restoration, it became an inn-restaurant with guesthouse. There is a parking lot next to the restaurant. You can taste traditional dishes indoors or on the beautiful terrace.

After the delicious meal you can walk to the roundabout (300 m) where you have a beautiful view of the Bertholdsburg. From the 13th century it served as the ancestral home of the Counts of Henneberg and is the oldest residential palace in Thuringia. In the 15th and 16th centuries, the well-fortified castle was converted into an early modern castle in Renaissance style. Today it is home to the Natural History Museum. The 40-meter-high main tower offers a picturesque view of the southern reaches of the Thuringian Forest.

About 10 km further - at the confluence of the Schleuse and the Werra - lies the uniquely preserved medieval complex of the former Premonstratensian canons' monastery Vessra.
On the 6-hectare current museum site, which is still completely surrounded by the old monastery wall, there are Romanesque and Gothic monastery buildings as a monumental building complex, as well as the farm buildings of the later domain company that were built since the 16th century and were often modified later.
The former monastery part has been an open-air museum since 1975.

Schmalkalden is a medium-sized town and is located on the southwest slopes of the Thuringian Forest. Here the rivers Schmalkalde and Stille flow together. The city is first mentioned in a document from the year 874. After the province of Hesse-Nassau was abolished by the Nazi government in 1944, Schmalkalden was incorporated into the Erfurt region and then into the country of Thuringia in 1945. At the end of the Second World War, Schmalkalden suffered heavily from American bombing. In April 1945, American troops occupied the city without fighting and in July authority was transferred to the Russians. In 1949, Schmalkalden, like the rest of Thuringia, became part of the GDR. After the Wende in 1990, everyone actually expected that Schmalkalden would return to Hesse based on their common history. However, that expectation did not come true; Schmalkalden is part of the new federal state of Thuringia.
What is special is that 90% of the late medieval half-timbered houses have been preserved.

From the road you get a beautiful view of Schloss Wilhelmsburg. It was once an important second residence of the landgraves of Hesse-Kassel. Today it is one of the most beautiful Renaissance castles in Thuringia and houses one of the oldest Protestant churches in Germany. Thanks to its original spatial structure, beautiful murals and stucco work and outdoor facilities, Wilhelmsburg is a jewel among German Renaissance castles.

Before entering Bad Liebenstein, Bergmannsklause Zum Arschleder beckons. In the lovingly landscaped beer garden you can sit comfortably, have a drink and/or eat something.

The Brunnen Temple contains the oldest spring in the region, whose healing waters became famous far beyond the borders. Rumors about the medicinal properties of the spring's water spread even before 1600 and the fountain legend is still told today.
The cleaned and enclosed source was named Casimir Fountain. The now renovated fountain temple for Bad Liebenstein's spring water is accessible to everyone on the ground floor to enjoy the fresh, sparkling and healing water.

The last visit during this ride is the Schloss Altenstein. Built in Neo-Renaissance style, it once served as a summer residence for the Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen. The castle is surrounded by a picturesque landscaped park with Chinese houses, artistic carpet beds and viewpoints over the Werra Valley. Since 2017, the castle houses a memorial to Johannes Brahms, who visited it several times.

You are gradually approaching Waltershausen again and the end of this fascinating cultural tour. But also the end of a wonderful drive through the beautiful Thuringian Forest with its winding and well-maintained roads. It is a pleasure to ride around here with your motorcycle.