Goldhausen – Gold Trail and Mining at Eisenberg

Goldhausen lies on the western slope of the 562 m-high Eisenberg. The Gold Trail, visitor mine and geological history shape local excursions, while cycling routes are also available at Eisenberg. If you are looking for a hotel in Goldhausen, the focus of your trip can help you decide: hiking and mining, geological interpretation or singletrack trails each offer a different emphasis.

The Gold Trail and routes at Eisenberg

The first section of the Eisenberg Gold Trail is about 3.3 km long. It leads through Goldhausen via 11 information stations and the outdoor Station 12, around the ruins of Eisenberg Castle with the Georg-Viktor Tower, and up to the summit of Eisenberg. The stated walking time for the Eisenberg Gold Trail is about two to three hours. The nature trail also includes steep sections through the forest, for which sturdy footwear is required.

Goldhausen hiking car park, accessible via Turmweg, serves as a landmark on the edge of the village. From March to October, an AR experience featuring reconstructions of the landscape’s geological history is available at the Georg-Viktor Tower viewing platform. If you are planning this seasonal experience, check visitor information before your trip. The Georg-Viktor Tower PANORAMA brings 250 million years of geological history to life by setting it in the context of today’s landscape.

Experience mining history and geology

The ruins of Eisenberg Castle stand in the highlands of Eisenberg at around 560 m above sea level and are surrounded by a rampart and moat. One of the Gold Trail’s stations is the St. Georg Mine. Beneath a wooden roof is the entrance to a 56 m-deep, almost vertical shaft that follows a particularly rich gold vein. A guided tour of the visitor mine offers a glimpse into the underground mining experience. Access to the visitor mine is partially accessible; the entrance to the shaft can only be reached on foot via gravelled, relatively steep forest paths.

The Zechenhaus also combines visitor experiences with mining history. Gold panning has been offered there in Goldhausen since 2011. The museum room in the Zechenhaus, which opened in 2018, presents the formation of gold and the history of the mine. This allows you to explore geological development, mining relics and the hands-on search for gold as different themes during your stay.

If you prefer to explore by bike, the Green Trails Korbach are located at Eisenberg near Korbach-Goldhausen. The routes comprise 10 km of singletrack trails, were completed in summer 2023 and are linked into four circuits of varying difficulty. They offer fun riding for the whole family. So, alongside hiking the Gold Trail, you can choose cycling routes as a focus in their own right.

Goldhausen within the wider destination of Korbach

In the wider destination of Korbach, the Wolfgang-Bonhage-MUSEUM KORBACH covers the world-famous fossils of the Korbach Fissure, the 1,000-year history of the medieval Hanseatic town and evidence of historic gold mining at Eisenberg. The Korbach GeoPath is a circular route about 20 km long that connects the Korbach Fissure with Eisenberg near Goldhausen. It offers a longer hiking option alongside the first, approximately 3.3 km section of the Gold Trail.

The “Between the Walls” circular route also runs through Korbach: At 2.1 km, it passes between the two medieval town walls around the historic old town. Ten stations feature facts and curiosities from the town’s history, as well as modern aspects of Korbach. These Korbach town highlights complement Goldhausen’s local attractions without replacing them.

Discover more destinations: Hillershausen, Lengefeld.

View the wider travel overview: Korbach.