Anhaltinischer and Preußischer Salstein

The “Anhaltinische Salstein” is a rocky cliff located in the nature reserve of the same name, approximately 3 km south of Bad Suderode. The small nature reserve is part of the EU bird sanctuary “Nordöstlicher Unterharz” (Northeastern Lower Harz) and is protected for its rock heath pine forest, which is atypical for the Harz Mountains, with pale hawkweed and the very rare bearberry on the rock cliffs and boulder scree slopes. Until 1918, the Anhalt Salt Stone and the border path, which is also partially designated as a “forest botanical hiking trail,” marked the sovereign border between the Duchy of Anhalt and the Kingdom of Prussia. Opposite, on the other side of the “Cold Valley,” lies the “Prussian Salt Stone.” The granite stone of the “Prussian Salstein” was partially destroyed in 1945 by the effects of war in characteristic places.

The name “Salsteine” is derived from the late medieval salt books, which are a register of property and service rights. From the parking lot below the sports field in Bad Suderode, the trail leads past the Felsenkeller and the Lessinghöhle, an old mining tunnel, to a crossroads in the Kalte Tal. From there, a signposted path leads steadily uphill to the “Anhaltinischer Salstein.” If you hike a little further into the Kalte Tal valley, you will find the signposted path up to the “Preußischer Salstein.”