Burgstall Zöpfhalden

The Burgstall Zöpfhalden is a vanished hilltop fortification from prehistoric or early historic times. It once stood on a spur at 900 metres above sea level, about 250 metres east of the hamlet of Zöpfhalden. The site lies in the Haldenwiesen meadows, a district of Steingaden in the Weilheim-Schongau district of Bavaria. A small stream called the Rentschengraben flows just east of the former ramparts. The area is now covered by woodland. The Bavarian State Office for Monument Conservation lists the earthworks as a protected archaeological site. Its official number is D-1-8231-0048, described as an ‘enclosed fortification of prehistoric or early historic date’. No traces of stone buildings remain above ground. The site is recognised in Werner Meyer’s 1986 handbook on Upper Bavarian castles, which records its location and probable age. Visitors reach the spot along quiet forest paths through Haldenwiesen. The gentle rise where the fort once stood is now a grassy knoll under tall spruce and beech. A small information board marks the protected area. From the knoll there are wide views over the valley of the Rentschengraben and across to the peaks of the nearby Alps. The silence and the scent of pine needles replace the sounds of the Iron Age garrison that once guarded this height.