Suhl loop: Around the Thuringian Forest (Thüringer Wald)

The Thuringian Forest doesn’t do flat. You’re either climbing or descending, and this loop makes that clear almost immediately. The first climb heads up to the Rennsteig, the ridge that runs along the spine of the forest. I crawled up it, as usual, but once you’re on top the road rolls through quiet woodland, with occasional views across the valleys below.

Eventually the road turns downhill for one of those descents that seems to go on forever. Down in the valley, at the lowest point of the whole ride, I stopped at Paulinzella Abbey. The huge Romanesque ruins sit right beside the road, yet most cars barely seem to notice them.

The villages are classic Thuringia: slate-roofed houses, church towers and, if you’re lucky, a bakery before the forest closes in again.

The final climb back to Oberhof is long but fair. The trees keep most of the sun off, and by the time you reach the top you know the hard work is over. From there it’s almost all downhill back into Suhl.

Six and a quarter hours on the bike. The Thuringian Forest doesn’t give you anything for free, but it pays everything back on the way down.

Flyby created with studio.cyclix.cc

115 km · 2,009 m up · high point 835 m · low point 335 m · 6h15 moving