Source Waltz On its route from Oelsnitz, the Vogtland Panorama Trail® dances along the White Elster to the spring-rich border region in the south of the region, to Bad Elster. Here you feel: water is life and joie de vivre – nowhere else in Vogtland can you experience this so directly. Especially in Bad Elster, enjoyment of nature can wonderfully be combined with enjoyment of music and culture.
From Oelsnitz, you can hike on the trail of the freshwater pearl mussel on this stage.
At Adorf, the descent into the idyllic Tetterwein valley follows. In the eponymous stream, as well as in the other tributaries of the White Elster, freshwater pearl mussels were artificially introduced – the stream was considered a “good pearl water.” In 1937, the population in the stream was estimated at up to 6,000 mussels. And the freshwater pearl mussel plays a major role in this area. Therefore, a detour to the Adorf museum is recommended. Here you can learn interesting facts about the freshwater pearl mussel in a lovingly designed exhibition, which was once found abundantly in the White Elster in Vogtland. With the three exhibition sections: lifestyle of the freshwater pearl mussel, pearlfishing in Vogtland, and the mother-of-pearl goods manufacturing based in Adorf, the largest collection on the topic in Germany has now been created. And additionally, in Adorf, you can get to know the entire Vogtland and its sights on foot. In the miniature display “Small Vogtland,” beautifully located in a park, detailed miniature models of many buildings and excursion destinations of Vogtland in scales from 1:25 to 1:100 can be admired.
The destination, Bad Elster, is soon reached. And here, the hiker awaits a true “Source Waltz.” Alone in Bad Elster, 10 healing springs gush, which can also be sampled in the spring houses.
You can spend a very relaxing time in the saline thermal bath. The saline thermal bath is fed by a saline spring discovered in 2009 in the Elster valley. It is the legacy of a closed ancient sea that lay hidden and protected deep in the earth's cradle for millions of years. What was discovered at a depth of 1,200 m turns out to be a true treasure from the Elster valley – the source of the Bad Elster thermal saline.