To fortified churches and wine taverns

From Iphofen railway station, first walk under the tracks to the "Alte Reichsstraße". There you walk to the right, following the markings "Black church on yellow background". At the bend to the right, go straight ahead onto a beautiful grassy path and follow the route to a small vineyard.

You will pass two hunting stands and come across an unexpectedly marvellous view at a double junction! Continue straight on in the direction of Mönchsondheim down into the Breitbach valley, where you will come to the Vogtsmühle after approx. 2 kilometres.

The Vogtsmühle was one of the mills in the Breitbach valley. It is known as early as 1471 and was in operation until the end of the 1960s. The mill fell into disrepair after the Thirty Years' War, but was repaired around 1700 and given another mill race. From 1800, there was also a gypsum corridor, as the area is rich in gypsum. Gypsum stones were ground for use as building plaster or fertiliser. The narrow, wooded Breitbach valley is full of old mills, as in the past not only wine was grown here, but also a lot of grain. As is generally the case, the numerous small mills are not located directly on the natural main watercourse, the Breitbach, but on a kind of branched-off artificial canal, the Mühlgraben or Mühlbach.

At the Vogtsmühle, a cycle path signpost points in the direction of Mönchsondheim. After a good 300 metres, turn left over a wide wooden bridge and then immediately right. Follow the course of the stream with its numerous pollarded willows until you reach the entrance to Mönchsondheim. From here it is only about 5 minutes to the fortified church museum in the town centre.

The Kirchenburg Museum is a special kind of open-air museum and unique in Bavaria: it is part of a living village community. All historical buildings are "in-situ" at their original location and have been closely interwoven with village life for centuries. The Main-Franconian village life of yesteryear is brought to life here. Grouped around the old lime tree on the village square are the fortified church with parish church and storehouse, the former town hall, the bakery and post office, a grocer's shop, the historic "Zum Schwarzen Adler" inn with bowling alley and herb garden as well as a small farm. Also worth seeing are the milk collection centre, a cooperative freezing plant and the two school museums from different eras. One highlight is the archaeological excavation site "archäosuntheim", which provides evidence of settlement in Mönchsondheim dating back to the Neolithic period. There are also regularly changing special exhibitions. Interesting themed tours, activity programmes and museum festivals, which take place throughout the year, complete the diverse range of activities on offer.

Continue in the direction of Hüttenheim and follow the signs for the Steigerwald Panorama Trail. From the entrance to the Kirchburg Museum, it leads past other buildings on the open-air museum grounds: the town hall is on the left, and the old school is around the corner on the right. Once you have left the village, it is only a few metres uphill and a panoramic view opens up on an open field! The route continues along a dirt track and finally Hüttenheim lies before you, behind it the Tannenberg with its panoramic views, stylistically characterised by vineyards. In the village you pass the Catholic Church of St John the Baptist - behind the wrought-iron gate is one of the most stylistically pure neo-Gothic churches in Bavaria. At Landgasthof May, go through the stone archway directly at the Bocksbeutel Express stop and enter the fortified church complex.

30 barns, some with several storeys and basements, surround the Evangelical Lutheran parish church. The whole complex is more than 2000 square metres in size and the wall around it is 5 metres high. Unfortunately, this was necessary in the Middle Ages, a time when armed conflicts were always to be expected, as the landlord relationships were complicated and the people of Hüttenheim had several landlords for centuries. This fortified church is one of the best preserved in the whole of Franconia and also the largest Franconian Gadenkirchenburg. The storehouses and vaulted cellars were used by the farms for wine and crops until the 20th century. Then the people of Hüttenheim also needed more space for modern tools and growing harvests, which is why the gatehouse and dilapidated extensions were demolished. In the 1960s, when the barns were hardly used any more, demolition was discussed, but fortunately this was not carried out. The entire complex was renovated - and today presents itself as a piece of jewellery! The fortified church market takes place in May and the fortified church wine festival in August!

You can find out more about guided tours, culinary village walks, the marketplace festival and other events as well as a detailed village walk as a PDF download at: www.willanzheim.de/tourismus/weinort-huettenheim/dorfspaziergang.html

Your next destination is the Tannenberg. Follow the Steigerwald Panorama Trail downhill to the right around the pond. Opposite, the Kneipp basin at the Neuwiesen spring invites you to refresh yourself. On the way to the summit cross, it is worth taking a detour to the left to the former Jewish cemetery, from where you can enjoy a wonderful panoramic view. Back to the crossroads and past a hut with a signpost for Tannenberg, continue left up a steep and stony ascent. There are several turn-offs, the H2 markings lead you to the summit cross with a bench for a snack and to the summit plateau.

Viticulture has been documented in Hüttenheim since 1199, but the vines only grow on the Tannenberg. Heavy gypsum keuper soils give the wines a special mineral flavour, but lighter, gravelly subsoil is also found. There are north and south, east and west vineyards around the Tannenberg, as well as flat and steep slopes, making it a versatile and well-utilised vineyard. Diversity is also reflected in the grape varieties: Scheurebe and Silvaner, Müller-Thurgau and Riesling and Pinot Blanc, red varieties such as Pinot Noir, Dornfelder, Domina and Regent. Goldmuskateller also grows here - and of course the famous Bacchus. Cheers!

Follow the "TraumRunde" signposts to the "Bergbrünnlein" just before Seinsheim. Signs point the way to the "Aussicht alter Steinbruch" and the "Weinparadiesscheune", our next destination. We pass a shelter hut with information about the "Alter Steinbruch" mine. An ascent on a narrow path is rewarded with a view and smoothly polished rocks at the old quarry! The trail continues uphill in the serpentines, always following the TraumRunde markings and winding around the old quarry in the Kunigundenwald forest. There is a magnificent view with information boards at the edge of the viewpoint! Continuing on, you pass an amazingly smooth rock with a stone bench in front of it. The path descends steeply again and you come back to the tarmac path, a panoramic path par excellence! Turn left and it's another 300 metres to the junction to Seinsheim, where you later turn right downhill. Hardly anyone would want to miss the refreshment stop at the Weinparadiesscheune, 100 metres further on.

When the wine paradise flag is flying, the Weinparadiesscheune is open. You can sit inside and outside - right on the border between Lower and Middle Franconia, by the way - and enjoy numerous local wines together with the magnificent panorama: in favourable weather, you can even see as far as the Rhön and the Vogelsberg in the Taunus. The sun sometimes sets blood-red on the horizon, combining a Mediterranean holiday atmosphere with sun-kissed Franconian wine. The barn is open at different times throughout the year and may remain closed when the snow cover is thick. Wines from many different winegrowers from all Weinparadies locations are served, with a wide range of food and drink to accompany them.

Continue to follow the "Traumrunde" markings to Seinsheim. After the crossroads with the dark wooden bench, there is a small landscape lake, behind which you enter the village: straight ahead along the stream, over the bridge over the stream and to the right of the stream to the cobbled road, then right and towards the church tower. On the outside of the fortified church wall, opposite the bakery on the left, there is a small room with an arched entrance set into the wall, a former prison cell! Climb the stairs next to it and take a look inside the fortified church complex.

The fortified church dates back to the 15th century and still consists of 17 barns with cellars. The family of the Lords of Seinsheim/Schwarzenberg fortified the town with gates and granted it market and town rights. The church with its 19th century baroque interior survived the bombing in 1945 without major damage and is usually open.

Back at the arched entrance, we walk anti-clockwise round the corner and along the outside of the fortified church wall, because there's something else special: the smallest brewery in Lower Franconia. You can find the opening times at: www.seinsheimer-kellerbier.de. The Bocksbeutel Express stop Seinsheim, Am Oberen Tor awaits your return journey on Schwarzenbergstraße to the left and Hauptstraße to the right.

Seinsheim am Oberen Tor stop → VGN leisure line Bocksbeutel-Express 109 → Nuremberg and others