Discover culture, mining and nature in Pobershau

Pobershau combines cultural history with traces of mining and a protected landscape. The Böttcher Factory, the church and the mining educational trail each tell a different part of the story of the town; Schwarzwassertal and Grüner Graben add their own distinctive features to the landscape. When planning your trip, it is worth keeping these themes separate: one is about exhibitions and historical objects, another about a nature reserve, an artificial watercourse or a designated day hike.

Cultural history and traces of mining

The Böttcher Factory is housed in a former wooden-goods factory and now serves as an exhibition building and cultural centre. One of its special exhibits is a fully operational machine workshop from the Wittig Machine Factory, powered by an actual line-shaft drive. Thus, alongside the building’s use, historical machinery is also a central focus.

Another key feature is the “Die Hütte” gallery. The centrepiece of its exhibition is Gottfried Reichel’s world-famous scenes from the Warsaw Ghetto. This gives Pobershau’s cultural side a distinctive historical dimension, clearly different from the technical traces of mining.

Pobershau Church is also part of the town’s history: it has stood since 1904, making it one of the youngest church buildings in the Ore Mountains. Those interested in architectural and cultural history will find a different historical reference point here than in the older mining-related themes. The three approaches—exhibitions, the church and technical heritage—bring the range of cultural themes in Pobershau to life without reducing them to a single period.

The Pobershau–Měděnec Mining Educational Trail comprises 88 stations in and around Pobershau. Selected objects of mining history are marked with location signs. The number of stations and the signs provide different kinds of orientation: the stations indicate the scope of the educational trail, while the signs identify selected objects. The trail is therefore a separate attraction alongside the machine workshop at the Böttcher Factory—both explore technical history, but in different ways.

Comparing landscapes, waterways and tours

The Schwarzwassertal nature reserve begins in Hinterer Grund near Pobershau and stretches for about eight kilometres to Kühnhaide. Grüner Graben also runs from Kühnhaide to Pobershau, but it is not a protected area; rather, it is an eight-kilometre artificial watercourse and a mining-engineering monument. The similar length figures therefore refer to different things: in the case of Schwarzwassertal, the extent of a nature reserve; in the case of Grüner Graben, an artificial watercourse with mining significance.

Another way to explore the area’s attractions is the Kammweg 14 day hike between Kühnhaide and Pobershau. It is 20.8 kilometres long. This specific route length distinguishes the hike both from the nature reserve, which is about eight kilometres long, and from Grüner Graben, which is also eight kilometres long. The names thus offer a first indication of different travel interests, without implying that the three attractions are the same.

Your preferred focus can help guide your choice of stay: if you are mainly interested in culture and mining history, the Böttcher Factory, the gallery and the educational trail are among the attractions to consider. If you would rather explore the landscape and water engineering, Schwarzwassertal and Grüner Graben are the main options; Kammweg 14 is described as a longer option specifically designated as a day hike. You can therefore search for accommodation in Pobershau based on the interests that will shape your trip, and compare the specific details of each attraction with your plans.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Oberwiesenthal, Schneeberg, Scheibenberg, Hormersdorf, Heidersdorf, Lössnitz, Raschau-Markersbach, Pockau.

Return to the regional travel overview: Erzgebirgskreis.