Sankt Heinrich: Swimming Spots and Pilgrimage History

Sankt Heinrich combines swimming spots on Lake Starnberg with the history of its former pilgrimage church. If you are looking for a hotel for a stay here, a simple question can help you decide whether this is the right destination: should your stay focus more on the swimming areas, or are you particularly interested in the church’s history? Both topics offer specific, clearly distinguishable points of interest. By the water, you’ll find a sunbathing lawn, bathing pier, pebble beach, and water sports; inside the church, you’ll find architectural history and works of art from several centuries.

Swimming on Lake Starnberg

The swimming area at the Karnifflbach is at the southern end of Lake Starnberg. It has a large sunbathing lawn and a bathing pier; the local DLRG water rescue station is next door. At the swimming area at the Wirtsbach, you’ll find a shallow pebble beach and a launch site for sailboats. A windsurfing school with board rentals is next to the swimming facility; there is also a campsite next to the grounds.

The differences between the two swimming areas offer a practical guide when choosing between them: at the Karnifflbach, the large sunbathing lawn and bathing pier are the key features. At the Wirtsbach, the shallow pebble shore and sailboat launch site stand out, along with the windsurfing options. This lets you choose based on the swimming spots and activities that suit your interests, without treating the two locations as interchangeable.

The former pilgrimage church

The former pilgrimage church grew out of a hermit’s cell associated with Blessed Heinrich. A stone church was built in the early 14th century and consecrated in 1324. The history of the church building therefore dates back to the early period of stone church construction.

Inside the church, the high altar features a Pietà from the 15th century. A stone tomb monument to Blessed Heinrich was made in 1626, and the choir features Late Rococo stucco. These dates highlight different periods: the early building history is followed by works of art and features from later centuries. Visitors interested in religious art will find specific points of reference here to distinguish between these periods.

More things to do in the wider destination of Münsing

In the wider destination of Münsing, Lake Starnberg offers sailing and boating, swimming and windsurfing, as well as surfaced circular routes for walking and cycling along its 49-kilometer shoreline. The Nordic Walking Park in Münsing offers several routes, all of which start at the sports grounds. Their length, elevation gain, duration, and difficulty rating make it possible to compare the scale of each route:

• Route 19 – Vital-Brunnen Route: moderate, 8 km, 112 meters of elevation gain, 1 hour 50 minutes.
• Route 20 – Schöner Ausblick or Erlebnis Route: moderate, 12.6 km, 178 meters of elevation gain, 3 hours.
• Route 21 – Castle and Church Route: moderate, 13.4 km, 191 meters of elevation gain, 3 hours 10 minutes.
• Route 22 – Ambach Route: difficult, 16 km, 231 meters of elevation gain, 4 hours 32 minutes.
• Route 23 – Lake Route: easy, 8.1 km, 59 meters of elevation gain, 1 hour 45 minutes.

The shortest route is Route 19, at 8 km; Route 23 has the shortest stated duration at 1 hour 45 minutes, even though it is 8.1 km long. At 16 km, with 231 meters of elevation gain and a difficult rating, Route 22 is the longest and most demanding of the five routes. The comparison shows that route length and time required do not correspond exactly.

The WasserSportCenter Starnberger See in Münsing offers catamaran sailing, windsurfing, and stand-up paddleboarding. If you are planning to take lessons or rent equipment, check availability before your trip. A leisure map of Münsing includes maps of the individual hamlets in the municipality, places of interest, and a number of hiking and cycling routes. It therefore gives you an overview of various destinations and routes within the wider destination.

Discover more destinations: Wolfratshausen, Bad Tölz, Kochel Am See, Lenggries, Egling, Bichl, Wackersberg, Greiling

Back to the overview of the wider destination: Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen.