In Sorge, border history and hiking are two distinct focal points. The Harzer Bachtäler Nature Reserve includes areas in Sorge. There are also the open-air Border Museum, the Small Border Museum and two circular trails of different lengths and difficulty ratings. This lets you plan your trip around the topics that interest you most.
Border history in Sorge
The Sorge Open-Air Border Museum displays original fragments of the GDR border security system and documents the history of the division of Germany. The Small Border Museum offers a different perspective: it features an original model of the border installations, as well as exhibits from the everyday lives of GDR border troops and residents of the border region. Together, the two museums provide different insights into border installations and everyday life.
The artwork “The Ring of Remembrance” is another landmark in Sorge’s border landscape. It is located right in the open-air Border Museum, on the Green Belt and along the former inner-German border. People with mobility impairments can visit the open-air Border Museum only by prior arrangement.
The Sorge local heritage festival is also part of the local events calendar: it takes place every year at the former small gondola pond. If you would like to plan your trip around it, check the date of that year’s event in advance.
Two circular trails, two different profiles
The easy circular trail to the Sorge Open-Air and Small Border Museums (HWN 46) is 6.9 km long and starts at the Sorge Border Museum car park. The stated walking time is 1 hour 50 minutes. The “In the Footsteps of Inner-German Border History 1” circular trail is longer, at 8.8 km, and is rated moderate; it starts at the Ebersbachstraße car park in Sorge. The two routes therefore differ in both distance and stated difficulty. Trail conditions may change; check them before setting out.
Train connections and a playground
You can take rides on the Harz Narrow Gauge Railway, hauled by a steam locomotive, from Sorge station. From there, you can reach the Brocken, Wernigerode or Nordhausen. Check the current timetable when planning your trip. There is also a playground for children near the station. If you plan to visit, check its current condition beforehand.
More to explore in Oberharz am Brocken
The wider destination of Oberharz am Brocken offers additional hiking and cultural attractions. A moderate hike there leads through mixed forest to the Krockstein viewpoint. It is 2.8 km long, and the stated walking time is 55 minutes. At the Harzköhlerei Stemberghaus, traditional earth kilns are built, fired and harvested from early April to late October. This offers a chance to experience the traditional charcoal-burning craft in action.
The Stiege Stave Church is another distinctive architectural landmark in Oberharz am Brocken: it is the only religious building in Germany in the Norwegian dragon style. These regional examples complement Sorge’s border history and trails with more options for planning a trip, without attributing them to the municipality of Sorge.
Discover more destinations: Benneckenstein, Trautenstein, Hasselfelde, Rübeland, Stiege, Elend, Neuwerk, Königshütte
Back to the overview of the wider destination: Oberharz Am Brocken.
