This hike starts in Stratzing, a small village north of Krems an der Donau and leads to the place where Fanny of Galgenberg, the world's oldest Venus figurines (more than 30,000 years old) has been found.
I started my hike at the "Rathaus" (municipal office) of Stratzing. From there I walked in westerly direction.
Follow the signpost "Eiszeit-Wanderweg". Opposite of the restaurant Gasthaus Brauneis you have to turn right into the "Alte Straße" ("old street" ).
After some hundred meters you can see a horse farm, the "Stefanihof" on the right side.
Just some meters after the road to Stefanihof branches off, you have to turn right into a small road.
Here the "Naturweg", an nature educational trail created by pupils of the Mary Ward School in Krems, starts.
Some more meters later also the "Eiszeitwanderweg" ("ice age hiking trail") starts. Unfortunately, both educational trails only have information boards in German language.
Of course you can also park your car around the tennis court, so you don't have to walk the way from the center of Stratzing to the beginning of the trails (approx. 1 km).
After the tennis court you have to turn right.
Here it is demonstrated what scientists can "read" from the loess layers.
Some meters later you can enjoy a nice view on Stratzing.
The "Naturweg" is a little bit longer than the "Eiszeitwanderweg" - approx. 1,200 meters vs. approx. 800 meters. After approximately 400 meters you can turn left and just walk the "Eiszeitwanderweg" or you continue walking the "Naturweg". Both trails are circular trails. I decided to take the "Naturweg".
When you come out from the woodland again…
you have a beautiful view. In the west you can see the church of Krems-Rehberg and the ruins of Rehberg castle.
In the south you see Göttweig Abbey.
In the east you see the Tulln Basin. Continue the way in westerly direction, turn left and after some meters turn right again.
Here is a nice lookout point.
Behind the lookout point you see this "house" which hosts an elevated water tank. When this tank was built in the late 1980s, the Venus of Galgenberg has been found. The figurine is just 7.2 cm high and sculpted from shiny green serpentine rock.
Behind the water tank, there's a much bigger wooden copy of the statue. The original statue is more than 32,000 years old and displayed at the Museum of Natural History in Vienna. It is the oldest Venus figurine that has been found so far.
The archeologists thought that it looks like a dancer, therefor they gave it the nickname "Fanny", after Fanny Elßler, a very famous Austrian dancer of the 19th century.
Next to the wooden statue, there's a pavillon, a barbecue area and a small archery range. These facilities must only be used as part of guided tours organised by the municipal authorities.
Then you come to the main street again. You can now walk back to your starting point or continue your walks through the vineyards.
A suggestion on how you can continue your hike can be found on my website schmatz.blog (in German language). In this article you will also find a more detailled map and more photos.
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