From Bayreuth to the source of the Red Main
Discover the source of the Red Main by bike. From Bayreuth, this tour takes you on a relaxed ride along the Red Main Cycle Path through the Franconian Switzerland Nature Park. Get there by train now!
Bayreuth
4 h
38 km
From the source to the jug - this tour has an almost sensual dramaturgy. You cycle southwards on the Red Main Cycle Path from Bayreuth to the source of the Rotmain. The water here is still crystal clear. Only later does it flow through clayey soil, bringing with it particles that give the river its red colour. The spring emerges from the earth in the middle of Franconian Switzerland at an altitude of 581 metres above sea level. Equipped with an e-bike, however, the metres in altitude will be easy for you to tackle.
The landscape you cycle through is also relaxing and varied. The tour takes you through fields, meadows and forest to Creußen. Here, where unique stoneware was produced in the 17th and 18th centuries, a stop at the jug museum is recommended. The various jugs tell the story of this region in their very own way. You return to Bayreuth through the valley of the Red Main.
A cycle tour for nature lovers and explorers
Arrive relaxed and hire bikes from the local hire companies. The capacity for taking bikes on the trains is limited and, depending on capacity utilisation, taking your own bike on board cannot be guaranteed.
Start and end station
Start station
Bayreuth Hbf
5 tour steps
38 km / 4 Stunden
End station
Bayreuth Hbf
Our tip: Please make sure to check your train connection and the expected capacity before you start your journey.
Schedule
Tour starts on Bayreuth Hbf
Direction
DB bicycle service station Bayreuth
There are 200 bicycle parking spaces in the immediate vicinity of the railway station.
Bahnhofstraße 20
95444
Bayreuth
Direction
You start at Bayreuth main station, from where you can reach Bayreuth's tourist information centre in 10 minutes. Here you have the option of hiring an e-bike.
Tourist Information Bayreuth
The Bayreuth Tourist Information Centre is a well-equipped point of contact for guests and residents who want to find out about sights, accommodation, restaurant tips and events in the Wagner city. Maps and tickets can be purchased here. Various city tours and walking routes are always worth a recommendation.
But that's not all:
Bayreuth also offers e-bike hire at this address.
Equipped with this, Bayreuth's guests can easily climb mountains and enjoy tours in the Bayreuth area, Franconian Switzerland or the Fichtelgebirge.
Rental is available from April to October. The hire charge is €35.00 per bike per day. A copy of your identity card is required for hire and a deposit of €150.00 per bike will be retained until the bike is returned. Please enquire about the current availability of bikes and opening times before travelling.
Opernstraße 22
95444
Bayreuth
- Monday: 09:00am - 06:00pm
- Tuesday: 09:00am - 06:00pm
- Wednesday: 09:00am - 06:00pm
- Thursday: 09:00am - 06:00pm
- Friday: 09:00am - 06:00pm
- Saturday: 09:00am - 04:00pm
- Sunday: 10:00am - 02:00pm
Direction
From the tourist information centre, follow the route past the Hofgarten, pass Rudolstädter Platz and take Universitätsstraße out of town.
Trattoria am Studentenwald
Crispy wood-fired pizzas, traditional pasta and delicious fish and meat dishes are served in the trattoria with its beautiful beer garden and playground. The menu is complemented by changing and seasonal specialities.
Schwedenbrücke 2
95447
Bayreuth
- Tuesday: 11:00am - 02:00pm and 05:00pm - 10:00pm
- Wednesday: 11:00am - 02:00pm and 05:00pm - 10:00pm
- Thursday: 11:00am - 02:00pm and 05:00pm - 10:00pm
- Friday: 11:00am - 02:00pm and 05:00pm - 10:00pm
- Sunday: 11:00am - 02:00pm and 05:00pm - 10:00pm
- Saturday: 05:00pm - 10:00pm
Direction
Via the villages of Destuben, Unternschreez and Haag, you will finally reach Lindenhardter Forst. Follow the signs for Rote Main Quelle and not the hiking trail, as this is easier for pedestrians than cyclists. The cycle path will take you straight to the Rote Main Quelle.
Red Main origin
The Red Main is one of the two headwaters of the Main. It rises in Franconian Switzerland and joins the right and northern headwaters of the White Main on the western outskirts of Kulmbach.
The Red Main rises ten kilometres south of Bayreuth in the Lindenhardt Forest at an altitude of 581 metres above sea level. The headwaters are located in the Franconian Switzerland-Veldenstein Forest Nature Park. Geologically, it belongs to the Brown Jurassic. The spring was set in stone in 1907 and the water flows out of it via a wooden pipe. There is a rest area for hikers at the source.
The river takes its name from the boggy red subsoil and the sediment of clay particles it carries, which makes it appear reddish in colour. The Red Main is 72 km long and flows over a gradient of 283 metres. It is fed not only by its source, but also by 41 tributaries along the way.
Direction
On forest and field paths, between fields and small woods, the route now leads out of the Lindenharter Forest towards Creußen on the Main cycle path. The villages of Wasserkraut and Gottsfeld lie to the side, some distance away. You finally cycle to Creußen via Bühl.
Perhaps you would like to stop for a snack? Then the Kutzer bakery at Bayreuther Straße 8 or the Heitzer bakery at Neuhofer Straße 4 in Creußen are the places to go.
Jug museum of the town of Creußen
Creußen stoneware was world-famous in the 17th and 18th centuries. In the 19th century, there were the first collections of various vessels, which were documented by the town fathers. These collections soon came under pressure from interested buyers, whereupon the then mayor Grüner decided that the collected jugs and vessels should be preserved as a collection and "put on display" for posterity.
The Krügemuseum is located in the medieval town centre of Creußen. It is housed directly on the town wall in the former gatekeeper's house and in the northern town gate and is home to a special treasure: the world-famous Creußen stoneware. It was once "good manners" for the nobility and patricians to have richly decorated drinking jugs made with their own coat of arms or name. The high esteem in which these vessels were held by their former users and their heirs has ensured their preservation.
Am Rennsteig 8
95473
Creußen
- 19.04. - 31.10.
- Wednesday: 10:00am - 12:00pm and 02:00pm - 05:00pm
- Saturday: 10:00am - 12:00pm and 02:00pm - 05:00pm
- Sunday: 10:00am - 12:00pm and 02:00pm - 05:00pm
- 01.11. - 04.04.
- Saturday: 02:00pm - 05:00pm
- Sunday: 02:00pm - 05:00pm and 10:00am - 12:00pm
Tour ends on Bayreuth Hbf
Direction
From Creußen, cycle northwards back towards Bayreuth. You follow the course of the Red Main, which meanders through the countryside on your right.
You cycle past small settlements, numerous fields and meadows, parallel to the B2, Germany's oldest main road, to Oberkonnersreuth in the south of Bayreuth. You now follow the Main Cycle Path and return directly to the city centre to the starting point. First to the tourist information centre, where you can return your hire bike if necessary, or you can arrive directly at the railway station.