Geopark Porphyrland

The Geopark "Porphyrland. Steinreich in Sachsen" is located southeast of Leipzig. It extends over the areas of the districts of Leipzig, North Saxony and Central Saxony. 14 towns and communities work together in a municipal working group under the umbrella of the Geopark Porphyrland. Steinreich in Sachsen eV association.

The boundaries of the geopark correspond roughly to the area of ​​the West Saxon volcanic complex, which covers an area of ​​2000 square kilometers and is one of the largest volcanic areas in Central Europe. Huge volcanic eruptions in the Rotliegend period around 300 million years ago left behind massive deposits of lava and embers, which are now valuable raw materials (quartz and granite porphyries, porphyry tuff, ignimbrites, etc.). During the Tertiary period, beginning 65 million years ago, with its warm and humid climate, the volcanic rocks weathered deeply. This is how today's kaolin deposits were formed. Weather-resistant rock areas now form the summits of this hilly landscape. During the Elster and Saale glaciations, these volcanic rocks were significantly reshaped. The glaciers ground down the mountains and gave them a whale-back-like shape (round humps). The shape allows us to reconstruct the direction in which the ice masses advanced during the Saale glaciation. Visible glacial cuts in the rock remained.

The evidence of Rotliegend volcanism and the traces of the Ice Age visible on the porphyry can be discovered as important geotopes, some of which are of national importance, in the Porphyrland Geopark.

Due to its location in northwest and central Saxony, the Geopark between Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz can be reached by car in less than an hour. It is ideal for hiking and cycling, but also for canoeing. Cyclists can move within the Geopark along the Mulde, but also between the Mulde and the Elbe, the Mulde and the Parthe, and along the Zschopau. The signposted Mulde cycle path runs through the entire area from south to north and leads through numerous towns and past several geotopes. A section of the Jacob's Pilgrimage Route and the Luther Trail Saxony run through the Geopark, which can be used on foot, as can the Muldental hiking trail. Canoeing is possible on the fast Mulde, which has been dammed for a long time to generate energy, during the day because of the many weirs, and is a profound nature experience on the almost unchanged river course, which is completely protected as a European bird sanctuary.