Treffelstein with Dragon Tower, Trails and Silver Lake

In the heart of Treffelstein stands the privately owned Dragon Tower, which you can view from the outside. There is also an information center at the tower, a Gothic relief in the church and the Sägmühlenweg trail, which starts at the church and leads to Silver Lake. The lake is nearby and adds circular walks, nature watching and water-based leisure activities to the town’s history.

Dragon Tower, Information Center and Church Relief

The information center at the Dragon Tower opened on September 12, 2021, in the former water reservoir at the tower. Its rooftop terrace offers panoramic views. The tower itself is privately owned and can be viewed from the outside—a clear distinction between the information center and the historic structure.

You can discover another detail in the baptistery of Treffelstein Church: it contains a Gothic relief dating from around 1480. A relief is a raised design that projects from a flat surface. This means you can appreciate the work as a distinctive form of visual art even without prior knowledge of art history; its approximate date also connects it to the history of the town.

Sägmühlenweg and Mountain Bike Route

The Sägmühlenweg starts at the church in Treffelstein. It follows the main road, a short stretch of Silberseestraße and then field paths to Silver Lake. Along the Silver Lake circular hiking trail, the Sägmühlenweg runs beside the restored millrace. Along the way, you will pass a nature observation station and a waterwheel that marks the site of the former sawmill. The canal, station and waterwheel offer different points of interest along the route: water engineering, nature watching and the site’s former use.

There is another option for a mountain bike ride: a short section of the Trans Bayerwald route passes through the municipality of Treffelstein. This gives you a choice of different activities when planning your trip—the route described above on foot, or a mountain bike ride through the municipality. The Sägmühlenweg leads to Silver Lake on foot, while the short Trans Bayerwald route section passes through the municipality of Treffelstein by mountain bike.

Silver Lake: Circular Trail, Nature and Leisure

The Silver Lake circular hiking trail is about seven kilometers long; an accessibility-related measurement gives its length as 6.4 kilometers. The trail is step-free and mostly easy to walk or ride along. The associated certification is valid from May 2024 to April 2027. Along the circular trail are three beaches with sunbathing lawns, as well as regularly spaced benches and covered rest areas.

The shores also differ in character: the northern and western shores were left to nature after the lake was created by damming, allowing a biotope to develop there. Amphibians, reptiles, insects, birds and fish find habitats around Silver Lake; beavers and bats also find suitable conditions there. If you are interested in nature watching, the area offers a closer look at how the shores have developed, in addition to the trail and rest areas.

Swimming, paddling, sailing, surfing and fishing are offered as leisure activities at Silver Lake. Along with the circular trail, these give you a choice between activities on land and on the water. When planning your day, you can focus on the circular trail or one of the water-based activities.

Choose Accommodation to Suit Your Travel Plans

For families with different interests, these can be considered as separate parts of a trip—from culture and nature watching to hiking, cycling and water-based activities. Compare accommodation with the kind of day you would like to plan in Treffelstein and at Silver Lake in mind.

Discover More Destinations

Discover more destinations: Rettenbach, Bad Kötzting, Lohberg, Grafenwiesen, Rötz, Zell, Schönthal, Furth Im Wald.

Go to the main travel overview: Cham.