The Elbe Sandstone Mountains is a low mountain range on the Elbe upper course and is three quarters in the Saxon Switzerland and to a quarter in the Bohemian Switzerland. It extends from Pirna in Saxony to Děčín in Czech Republic.
places
upstream:
- Pirna - District town of the Saxon Switzerland district, gateway to Saxon Switzerland with a historic old town.
- spa Rathen - Popular health resort with the towering rock formation Bastei and an untouched rock landscape around the Amselgrund.
- Koenigstein - Small town with an impressive as well as militarily useless fortress.
- Bad Schandau - Center of the rear Saxon Switzerland with National Park House.
hinterland to the right of the Elbe:
- Mockery - with a castle high above the Polenz Valley, on the eastern edge of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains.
- Hinterhermsdorf - pretty village that lies in the "farthest corner" of Saxon Switzerland. It is very popular Upper lock with a boat trip.
- Sebnitz -
- Stumble - The landmark is Stolpen Castle.
left Elbe hinterland:
- Gohrisch - Community on the plateau with beautiful rock formations.
- Reinhardtsdorf-Schöna - Located high above the Elbe Valley. Starting point for walks and hikes to the Kaiserkrone, the Zirkelstein and the Kleinem- and Großem Zschirnstein.
Bohemian Switzerland
- Děčín (Eng. Tetschen) - largest city and district town in Bohemian Switzerland on the southern edge of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains. It starts south of the city Central Bohemian Uplands.
- Hřensko (Eng. Herrnskretschen) - an excursion and shopping location directly on the German border; At 112.5 m it is the deepest place in Bohemia.
- Jetřichovice (Eng. Dittersbach) - village on the southern edge of the national park with traditional glass blowing.
- Labská Stráň (Eng. Elbleiten) - village on the right bank of the Elbe; Nearby is the Belvedere viewpoint.
Other goals
- The Bastion
- The Lilienstein
- The Prebischtor
- The Edmundsklamm
background
The Elbe Sandstone Mountains are largely made up of marine Cretaceous sandstones that are around 600 meters thick. Subsequent uplifts brought these layers to the surface and the runoff of the (later) Elbe and its tributaries created a fragmented landscape with deeply cut valleys and mighty rock formations. The landscape is characterized by the different levels of clay content of the sandstones, the higher the clay content, the flatter the slopes. Conversely, sandstones containing pure quartz form almost vertical rock faces.
The varied landscape with flat plateaus, the Evenness, deeply cut shady valleys establish, distinctive field formations have produced a varied fauna and flora with a biodiversity that is unique in Central Europe. Accordingly, part of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains is protected as a nature park on both sides of the border.
