Sensopark Berg im Drautal

1st station: waterfall – foot bath
Immediately after the Hufnagelhaus, the moat forest takes us in its arms, we pass the count’s saw and the Maarmühl cross and take the turnoff to the torrent. The wide forest path crosses the torrent in the deep ditch several times before we finally arrive at the Paracelsus waterfall. Here we want to take a fresh foot bath. We take off our socks and hiking boots and climb over the sharp stones into the cold water. This is a touch and feel and the soles of the feet redden. You gently balance yourself through the stream water and hold your breath until the pain caused by the cold subsides. The footbath is thus also a veritable breathing exercise. It helps against all kinds of rheumatism, gout and nervous disorders, even catarrh, even preventively.

Meditation at the wooden footbridge at the Johann Hufnagel-Weg

2nd station: wooden walkway – meditation
Before we put our hiking boots back on, we walk the few steps to the next station barefoot. This exercise on the gravel path is designed to sharpen the sense of balance and decompress the sensitive soles of the feet. Behind the waterfall, after two interlocking mighty water weirs, we part from the torrent trail at the turnoff towards Emberg. A teetering wooden footbridge leads across the stream to the other bank. Here we settle down and dangle our feet into the flowing water. “The brook caresses the feet,” Johann Hufnagel said of this meditation exercise. Both arms back, back hollow, eyes fixed on the surface of the water and feet in the ice-cold water. Five minutes of silence, just switch off.

3rd station: rest bench – meditation
Shod again, we leave the stream and set off on the steep climb up the Emberg. The steeper the trench drops down to the right, the more we look for firm footing on the slippery and soggy ground, because railings and the like are not available here. The path we are now on is marked B24, we cross a mixed high forest with firs, spruces, beeches and hazels. On the left, steep granite and primary rock blocks rise from the soft humus. From below, a cool wind blows upward from the ditch through the sparse trees. Where the former cattle drive turns into a flat passage, a resting bench awaits the breath-holding hiker: an ideal spot for the next meditative rest break in the forest.

4th station: Zochnig meadow – breathing exercise
In the forest, we repeatedly cross mountain gullies where felled tree trunks are dragged down the ditch. After a few hundred meters we step out into a sunny clearing and leave the ditch. The square on the Zochnig meadow offers a magnificent view down to Greifenburg and to the Weissensee behind it: ideal for a breathing exercise. First we get down on our knees and hop in a circle twice, then we stand up, shake our legs and practice a kind of rope hopping without a rope, rotating the upper body around its own axis, rotating the pelvis around a fixed point, once to the right and then to the left and after each exercise shake out arms and legs vigorously. Then head circles, arm rowing – back and forth. And to the knees. When pulse and breathing have adjusted to the 1000 m above sea level, relax and again back to back slightly bend your knees and loosen muscles. Only the thighs remain tense.

Breathing exercise on the Zochnig meadow at Johann Hufnagel-Weg

5th station: Schönegat – singing exercise
We continue climbing the mountain, after the Zochnighof follows the Marksenhof and a richly carved wayside cross from the Breitegger dynasty. Here we turn left and walk on a shady forest path along the Zametter stream. On the hollow path we go around the Zochnig-Buckel and climb step by step uphill to Schönegat, a resting place on a forest clearing, which is adorned by another interesting weather cross. Here the farmers make marriage vows and ask for rain in dry years. But the rest area is also a delight for a snack, reflection and relaxation – and of course for singing. Those who like to sing should try it here, preferably in several voices. The old Carinthian saying holds true: “A Carinthian and a glass of wine – that’s half a singing club.”

Vocal exercise

6th station: Eisendle bath – arm bath
A few hundred meters further begins the Eisendle estate, which enjoyed great popularity in the past as an “iron bath”. The iron acidulous water was praised especially for its healing effect on diseases of the respiratory, digestive and circulatory organs, joint ailments, gout, anemia, nervous and gynecological disorders, according to an old report about the water. Of course, the Eisendle still offers baths today – but nothing remains of the rustic accessories, wooden troughs and glowing stones. For those who are satisfied with an arm bath, below the farm there is a fountain from which the iron spring gushes. Of course, the water does not taste good. But dipped the arms three, four times, it has an invigorating effect. And afterwards a coffee on the sun terrace and the dry hiking palate is satisfied.

7th station: Schader cross – breathing exercise
From Eisendle, continue east on a slightly ascending, wide forest road (B24). The path is not very difficult and crosses deciduous forests and clearings. An old cable car is also still standing, which was used to transport the manure to the fields above the farms. We cross the Mühlbachl through a narrow ditch and the lookout point at the Amser Bichl until we meet the “Schader Kreuz”. The terrain below the wayside cross is ideal for a breathing exercise: sit on the forest floor and let your head fall into your neck. Bending the legs, supporting the hands backwards, the upper body upright and the head resting on the neck, begin to count. One, two … With each breath, you bend your head forward to clear the airways and then – as you exhale – let your head fall back. And ten times in a row until you get dizzy.

8th station: Eder farmer – treading grass
From Schader Bichl, the highest point of the hike, a field path leads downhill through the so-called “Schwagen”. It is hard to imagine that until a few decades ago there were two farms here. Only some piles of stones and walls remind of it. The path is easygoing and leads across freshly scented mountain meadows. At the Eder, the first property under the Schader Kreuz, we leave the B24 path and cross the courtyard where a domestic well invites us to take a sip of water. Afterwards, on the soft meadow carpet below, the soles of the feet are strained again a little: a natural tasting experience. Let yourself fall, turn your lungs outward and shake off all the weight of the ascent. You’ll notice that your sense of balance is more engaged barefoot and feel how the freshness of the ground transfers to the well-being of your feet.

Grass treading at the Eder farmer at Johann Hufnagel-Weg

9th station: Brechlerstub’n – amazement
An attraction awaits us a few steps further on. Passing the Orterhof next to the little church we turn into a field path – straight into the “hell”, a steeply sloping hollow path to the Auernighof. Halfway we come across an old Brechlerstub’n, the heart of the formerly widespread linen production on the Goppelsberg. To this communal room, the peasants brought the “tussled” (torn out by the root) tufts of flax, which had previously been dried and bleached in the fields for two to three weeks. In the Brechlerstub’n the flax was roasted on racks over the fire. More than ten farmers helped together to extract fine “Werch” (for shirts and linens) and coarse “Reisten” (for canvases and yokes) from the raw material. The Brechlerstube was in operation until the end of the 1950s, when the cloth market was flooded with cotton fabrics.

10th station: Auernighof – Meditation
At the end of the cattle drive in the hollow way there is a rest bench, ideal for meditation. From here, once again, you look down on the memorable weather lock between Jauken and Reißkofel, the well-known Ochsenschlucht. Close your eyes and review the Senso journey to this point. Tell yourself the most important experiences out loud, rewind them in your mind like a movie. If you have a schnapps of arnica with you, then unwrap, rub arm and leg joints. Later, when you pass by the orchard of the Auernig farm, you will see one of the most beautiful wayside crosses in the village, a life-size corpus of Christ carved by a local mountain farmer.

11th station: nose fountain – arm bath
A few hundred steps below Auernighof, the Senso trail joins Frallacher Weg, from where we walk back towards the center of the village, passing shady ditches and sunny spots, with a magnificent view of the Drauschleife near Berg. In one of the ditches, an unknown artist has set a carved monument resembling a forest rat, letting water through his nose: finally, a good sip of clean water again, plus a refreshing arm bath. We bend our well-warmed bodies over the trough and dip our forearms into the invigoratingly cold water. Two or three times for twenty seconds each, then we shake our arms and the cycle revives anew.

Nose fountain arm bath on the Paracelsus Way

12th station: village square – end
The last stage of the Paracelsus Way is quickly completed. On the way to the town center we pass the parish church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary from the 12th century and the weathered Karner (ossuary) from Carolingian times two sacral buildings, for which an extra visit program on Sunday after mass is worthwhile. With the little church of St. Athanasius at the bottom of the valley, they are among the oldest buildings in the area. They have survived earthquakes, floods, landslides, Turkish invasions and fires. No less old, but unfortunately no longer in its original state, are the parsonage and the oldest inn in the village, the “smithy”, which hides a wooden ceiling from the 11th century in the northern part of the house.

1st station: Klock am Mühlbach – breathing exercise
The starting point of today’s Sensowege is the Moortretbad at the Glocknerhof. We follow the panoramic path in the direction of Greifenburg, past the two Zametter farms with their old orchards, until we come to the Mühlbach. Behind it spreads a beautiful meadow, a real power place of nature. The so-called Klock consists of an old harp and a small hill where the legendary Liebesbankl is located. Here we get new energy with a breathing exercise – and best of all barefoot. Take off your walking shoes, stand with your legs shoulder-width apart on the floor, knees slightly bent. Then focus on a point with your eyes or keep them completely closed.

The breathing exercise:
First, let your arms hang at your sides. Thumb and index finger touch and form a circle.

• Now slowly move your arms up from the bottom sideways so that they touch above your head – like a jumping jack movement or a wing beat. During this movement, inhale deeply and slowly through the nose into the abdomen and hold the breath (with arms above) for five seconds.
• After that, the movement is reversed, so arms again slowly move down. You breathe out completely (also through the nose) during this process. You also hold your breath here for five seconds.
• Repeat this exercise three times. At the end of the third repetition, after holding the exhaled state for five seconds, dangle the arms forward across to the floor. Finally, shake out and relax and continue breathing calmly.
• Then repeat the entire exercise sequence described previously from point one to four, but exclusively with the left arm. Then the entire exercise sequence from point one to four, using only the right arm.

2nd station: Erni Nass bench – herbal exercise
After the breathing exercise, we return the few meters to the mill stream and then climb uphill to the left next to the course of the stream (panoramic path). Further up, we cross the stream again and continue on the wonderfully fragrant forest path, passing uprooted tree trunks and clearings and enjoying the view over the valley. The path goes uphill and downhill, collect along the way any little herbs and fragrant plants that seem familiar, so that the next exercise will work. Because soon we come across a small resting bench, where Erni Nass also drew strength. At well over 90 years old, she was the oldest hiking guide in the Drau Valley, not a bit quiet and gifted as a herb witch. Sit down and spread the collected herbs in front of you, smell them one by one and put them down again. Then assign the smells in your mind and make sure the assignment is correct in a second pass. Concentrate and repeat the exercise a few times, you will see how the mind opens.

3rd station: Alpine view – grass treading
After this break of concentration we continue our way, we cross a small brook and come to the Amberg above Hauzendorf, pass an old homestead, the Bachmann, a herb witch house and a beautiful wayside cross as well as an old water basin. After that, the path continues on asphalt, downhill and uphill again on gravel. Then we cross the courtyard of the old Alpenblick guesthouse to end up in a beautiful flower-strewn meadow with a water pond. Here we take off our walking shoes to feel the fresh grass for the next few hundred meters. China has its own spring festival (Qingming or Taqing Festival) dedicated to treading grass. In Bavaria, grass treading has been a tradition since the 19th century and comes from the Kneipp school. Grass treading is simply about stroking the hyper-sensitive soles of your feet and feeling the pleasant sensation of fresh earth and moist soil.

4th station: Amberg windmill – mental exercise
The rest of the way is comfortable and easy to walk. At a historical memorial dedicated to the Battle of Greifenburg in 1252, we reach the asphalt road to the Emberger Alm. Just opposite the display board is a beautiful wayside cross and above it a funny windmill, erected on the occasion of a school project. So what is the reason for the display board? In the valley below, 800 years ago, the imperial armies of the Gorizians and Tyroleans fought a bloody battle with the papal troops of the Spaniards for the inheritance of the Babenbergs, at the end of which the influence of the Archbishop of Salzburg was consolidated with possessions in Carinthia. The nearby and highly visible Greifenburg Castle played an important role as a bone of contention at that time. The question now is, was the medieval carnage actually worth it?

5th stop: Greifenburg toll house – tour
We now walk downhill and pass the Gartnerhof and then the cemetery of Gries with a small church from the Spanheimer period, dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi. St. Vitus is dedicated. Whoever is interested: The western porch pillars of the church show two beautiful walled-in Roman-period inscription stones, one of which transmits the fragmentary funerary inscription of the local family of the Antestii and of Gaius Antestius Ambudsuilus, mayor of Theurnia. From the Mauerschmied house we then follow the Gnoppnitzbach downhill until we reach the main road, where the old toll house stands. The inconspicuous little house, which is a listed building, was of great importance in earlier centuries, as customs duties and tolls were collected here from passing merchants.

6th station: Hauzendorfer Waldl – tactile exercise
After a brief visit to the toll booth, we have two options for continuing our 17-Kräuter Weg. The more charming spruce needle path (G17) leads directly south along the Gnoppnitzbach stream, the plainer G16 starts a little further west as an asphalt path and leads through the same forest as a passable gravel path. On the G17 downstream there are several possibilities to cross the Gnoppnitzbach (Mautbach) and later to stroll through a beautiful spruce forest before we step out onto the flat land and feel wonderfully soft cattle pastures under our feet. Take advantage of the diverse tree vegetation in the Hauzendorfer Waldl to rediscover your often neglected sense of touch. Linger where you are also visually drawn, feel and smell the resin and bark. Here you can not get lost at all.

7th station: Berger Moos – cloud riding
However you walk through the small wood, at the end you will meet again the gravelled and later unpaved dirt road G16, which turns west just before the mighty Drau River and then runs along the railroad tracks and along the “Lauen”, a quiet “animal” populated waterbed. In some places there are “Passage prohibited” signs, but they are not to be heeded, as this is an officially signposted path and there is no danger. Only where it goes over the railroad embankment (but which we do not have to cross), watch out. Soon we come to a larger rivulet, the spur of the Zametter Mühlbachl, where the Berger Moos, a hugely beautiful cattle pasture, begins. Here we lie back on the ground for a rest and count the clouds in the firmament for ten minutes.

8th station: St. Athanasius – Meditation
A few hundred meters further on we come across St. Athanasius, a former pilgrimage church in the open field. The church, first mentioned in 1443, was originally consecrated to St. Nonosius by the Bishop of Caorle in 1485 and has been enlarged several times. The unusual appearance of the popular little church is due to the high late Gothic choir with a pointed gable helmet, which adjoins a low Romanesque nave with an even lower open porch. It’s best to settle down in the shaded porch for a meditation practice. Here you can read the history of the church on a time table and then let go of your thoughts.

Try a “journey inward”: sit up straight and relaxed, with your spine straight. Then lower your weight vertically through your body down to the floor. Let go of all your plans, worries and fears, let the wind carry you like a feather. Travel without baggage into the innermost part of your being, to where the power resides that some people call God. Slowly feel the warmth flooding from the inside out and taking possession of the whole body.

9th station: Brunner mill – arm bath
Above the church we cross the main road to walk on the circular path marked B26 through the Saurasten. If you are already tired, you can turn right at the Pleschgatter and walk directly back to the Glocknerhof. The fitter hikers turn left to march towards the village center. We pass some beautiful newly built houses and then walk uphill a few steps to come across a small water mill after a small bridge over the Berger Wildbach, the last remaining of many grain mills on this stream. Here, give yourself a quick arm bath before heading home. Just kneel down, dip your forearms into the water, for ten to fifteen seconds, then pause and repeat. Then take your bath towel from your backpack, wet it with the fresh wet and use it to cool your forehead. A small resting bench below the mill gives you time to linger a bit.

10th station: Glocknerhof Moorbad – water treading
On the last stage of the 17-Kräuter Weg you hike up the Berger Wildbach to the village square and follow the Kirchweg in the direction of the Glocknerhof, past the department store, the Ährenhof and the Kriesmayer Wegkreuz through the “Jenseits” and then over the Hohlweg. At the end we end up at the Glocknerhof and use the healing moor bath to tread water. Kneipp is a treatment method to stimulate circulation and arterial blood flow. The cold stimulus causes the blood vessels to contract. Together with muscle movement, this promotes venous blood flow and prevents varicose veins. By the way, treading water in the evening helps to fall asleep better.

Application: Step barefoot into knee-deep cold water and step on the spot. Then stride through the water like a flamingo. One leg should always be pulled completely out of the water, and the tip of the foot should be bent down slightly (stork walk). After 30 seconds, you feel a strong cold sensation in your feet and lower legs. Then briefly leave the cold water to warm up the feet again. Repeat this procedure several times. After treading water, simply wipe off the water (do not dry off) and do a little exercise to warm up.