VIA ROMEA Gotha - Friedrichroda (27)

Starting point is the market square in Gotha. Above the square, we can see Friedenstein Castle, which is our first striking point on the stage from Gotha to Friedrichroda. After crossing the courtyard of the castle, we keep to the right and walk through the castle park until the street "Parkallee". Follow this road a little while to the right until the road "Lindenauallee". At this intersection, we cross the "Parkallee" and continue in the opposite park, crossing the canal (“Leinakanal”).

After we have crossed the park, we come across the "Parkstraße". We turn right to the intersection with "Lindenauallee". Here we cross the "Parkstraße" and enter the opposite park. Cross the "Leinakanal" and come to the "Parkstraße" on the other side of the parc. Follow this road to the right to the intersection with "Uelleber Straße". Here we turn left, cross a railway track and follow the road straight ahead. To the right, the "Friedrich-Ebert-Straße" turns off, we follow this one and come to the end of Gotha.

Continue straight ahead (cycle footpath) and cross "Krusewitzstraße". Follow the "Siedelhofstraße" to Sundhausen. Through the old town centre, the route takes us along the roads “Hauptstraße”, "Kirchhög", "Pfarrstraße" and "Mönchstraße". We come to an intersection "Hauptstraße", corner "Inselsbergstraße". Here we go left, until the street turns right "Am Stockborn". Along a railway track, we go to a crossroads. Here, we do not take the straight field path to the left and we do not cross the track section, but take the middle path towards the aqueduct of the “Leinakanal”. We cross this one on a narrow bridge and continue straight along the forest trail, until we reach a paved road. Follow this road to the left and then come to the federal motorway A4.

After crossing the motorway bridge and crossing the rails of the "Thüringerwaldbahn", we keep to the right and reach the village of “Leina”. Follow the "Hauptstraße" in a long curve and turn right into the "Wahlwinkler Straße" just before the end of the town. After a few metres, a field path turns left. This one takes us straight to “Schnepfenthal”. In the village, at the "Cumbacher Straße", we turn right and follow the "Poststraße" straight ahead, until we come across "Rheinhardtsbrunner Straße". After a few metres to the left, just before the exit of the village, a path with a ascent to the left at the edge of the village goes up into the forest.

We follow the signs for Friedrichroda. The ascent up and then, keeping to the right, we cross the forest. The route takes us directly to Friedrichroda. Via the "Rödlicher Weg", "Max Küstner Straße" and "Buschmannstraße", we reach the town centre.

We reach our destination, the church of Sankt Blasius, via the "Lindenstraße", until the corner "Marktstraße".