Discover Gasteig: Local History and Geological Orgel Pipes

Gasteig’s local history and the hike to the Geological Orgel Pipes are separate topics. The local history covers past events, a cycling club and a children’s project at the B299 underpass. The tour to the Geological Orgel Pipes, on the other hand, starts in Unterneukirchen and continues towards Oberschroffen.

Events and Cycling History in Gasteig

In 2014, the vintage car gathering was held at the Haindl-Wirt car park in Gasteig for the ninth time. It was held annually at the time and was well attended. Its ninth edition makes the gathering a recurring event of that period. This distinguishes it from a one-off celebration and gives it a particular place in the local history of the vintage car scene.

The Gasteig Cycling Club was founded in 1921 and later temporarily revived. This revival included a festival and a cycle race around Gasteig. The founding year and temporary revival mark different periods in the club’s history; the festival and race belong to the later episode. Anyone interested in cycling will find a historical local topic here, alongside the hike.

At a village festival on 13 May some years ago, the Rasenmäher-Bulldog-Freunde Maderlehen raised the maypole using their own strength. The event took place at Hermann and Gudrun Haindl’s inn in the Gasteig district. Unlike the vintage car gathering, which is described as recurring annually, the focus of this event is on raising the maypole. The named group and the way the maypole was raised give this festival scene its own distinctive character.

In 2002, 35 children painted an underwater scene on one side of the B299 underpass in Gasteig. The painting adds a collective creative project to the history of the clubs and festivals. While the village festival and cycle race focus on the event, here the focus is on the underwater scene at a specific location in the village.

Geological Orgel Pipes and Hike

Near Oberschroffen, natural tubes are found in a former quarry in a glacial gravel conglomerate. The Geological Orgel Pipes are 50 to 60 centimetres in diameter and extend downwards in a tapered, vertical formation to a depth of up to ten metres. The contrast between their diameter and depth illustrates the different scales of these formations; their vertical orientation is as much a part of their shape as their tubular form.

The 5.0-kilometre hike to the Geological Orgel Pipes starts in Unterneukirchen. It passes through Winkl, Pinsmaier and Obergrund, continuing towards Oberschroffen, and has 53 metres of ascent. The route length, ascent and waypoints offer different kinds of information for planning: they indicate the distance, the stated ascent and the sequence of named places. The starting point in Unterneukirchen is a distinct reference point for the tour, separate from the historical scenes in Gasteig.

Church History in Unterneukirchen

In the wider travel destination of Unterneukirchen, the parish church of Christ the King was built in 1962. The restored branch church of St John and St Aegidius dates from 1479. These are two church landmarks from markedly different periods: the older branch church and the later-built parish church. Anyone wishing to include historic churches in their travel plans will find two clearly dated examples here in Unterneukirchen.

For the wider travel overview: Unterneukirchen.