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Germany

Bavaria

Lower Bavaria

Landkreis Straubing-Bogen

Falkenfels

Falkenfels Castle – St. Sixtus Church on the Gallner loop from Falkenfels

Routes

Bike touring routes & trails

Germany

Bavaria

Lower Bavaria

Landkreis Straubing-Bogen

Falkenfels

Falkenfels Castle – St. Sixtus Church on the Gallner loop from Falkenfels

Hard

riders

Falkenfels Castle – St. Sixtus Church on the Gallner loop from Falkenfels

02:52

40.0km

640m

Cycling

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.

Last updated: May 15, 2026

Tips

Your route passes through a protected area

Please check local regulations for:

Naturpark Bayerischer Wald

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387 m

Neukirchen Castle

Highlight • Castle

Tour is partly demanding

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871 m

Falkenfels Castle

Around 1100, the Counts of Bogen built the castle on the rock that slopes steeply on three sides. From 1232, the Knights of Hohenfels ruled the castle, and from 1400, the Falkensteiners of Falkenfels. In 1331, “Valkenfelss” is mentioned in a copy from the 15th century as a landed estate.

In 1425, the castle came into the possession of the Frauenbergers and remained so until their extinction in 1480. The castle was plundered by the Hussites in 1425 and conquered by troops of Duke Albrecht IV in the Böckler War in 1468. The Frauenbergers were followed by the Paulsdorfers. In the Löwler War, the castle was besieged for a week in 1492 and burned down after the capitulation on June 8, 1492, but was then rebuilt by Hans von Paulsdorf.
In 1525, the property passed to the Seyboltstorffer family through marriage. From 1607 to 1796, the noble family of Barons von Weichs owned Falkenfels Castle. In the Thirty Years' War, the castle was set on fire by the Swedes in 1641, but was then rebuilt.
On April 15, 1796, Josef Maria von Weichs sold Falkenfels and the associated manorial estates to Baron Gabriel von Buchstetten for 320,000 guilders. In 1807, the castle was again burned down, but was rebuilt.
After the end of the Falkenfels manorial estate, the castle economy was destroyed in 1820. In 1821, the Lang family acquired the castle and set up a brewery here, which lasted until 1934. In 1925, a fire destroyed large parts of the complex, after which it was only partially rebuilt. From 1919 to 1950, the castle belonged to the Schimmelmann family. On May 8, 1951, the furniture manufacturer Franz Xaver Baier from Straubing bought the castle and converted it into a hotel with a restaurant. The castle was also increasingly used as a conference and congress building. Since 2001, the castle has belonged to the publisher Udo Sieber.
Falkenfels Castle was originally surrounded by two terraced ring walls, one above the other. Today, the fortifications are only preserved on the north side. Approximately in the middle of the east side is the keep from the 13th century, the battlements are from a later period. The baroque castle chapel of St. Joseph was built in the 17th century on medieval foundations. It contains gravestones of Falkenfels castle lords. The outer areas of Falkenfels Castle are freely accessible, otherwise it serves as a castle hotel and restaurant.

Source: Excerpts from wikipedia.de

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2.58 km

View Toward Steinach

Highlight • Viewpoint

15.7 km

St. Sixtus Church on the Gallner

Highlight • Religious Site

The legendary little church on the Gallner has always been a popular pilgrimage and excursion destination. As the church patron, "St. Sixtus" holds his protective hand over the mountain church.

There are a few legends about the lonely church on the first of the three peaks of the 709 m high Gallnerberg.

The home curator Walter Meinhard reports that the church patron, as a shepherd boy, is said to have struck a sign into a rock with a hammer after he was searched for when he was elected pope.
The Gallnerkirche is mentioned in a Roman document as early as 1490, when it was given an indulgence by four Italian bishops. Since the house of God was already standing then and the news of its existence had reached Rome, the time of construction must have been much further back.

After secularization

1803: The church was auctioned off to the conceller's son Andreas Ettl.
1809: He sold it to Peter Stegbauer, who moved it into an apartment.
1846: On April 17th, the Gallner builder Lorenz Lehner acquires the house with stable from his subsequent residents.
1852: The church is restored.

The existing church on the Gallner is a small, late Gothic complex from the end of the 15th century with changes in the Baroque period and the 19th century. It has a flat ceiling and the windows in the chancel have pointed arches, while the other windows have round arches. The neo-Gothic high altar dates from 1853. In the middle shrine there is an old wooden figure showing Saint Sixtus.
Event highlight: the traditional Gallnerbergfest

Every year on Whit Monday, the traditional Gallnerbergfest takes place at the Gallnerkirchlein.

Q: Bavarian forest

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