Grottenstein - mystische Burgruine

As part of the 2nd Legends and Fairy Tale Days Chur, a guided hike to the castle ruinS of Grottenstein will take place on 25 November 2018 at 10 a.m. with exciting stories from the local world of legends, about treasure-keeping cave fairies, enchanted toads and the golden bowling game... presented by the legendary hiker, nature guide and storyteller Andreas Sommer. The stories are mysteriously interwoven with the immediate experience of nature in the wintry mountain forest and in the enigmatic cave castle, where the campfire makes twitching shadows dance on the rock walls.

The castle ruin Grottenstein is located above Haldenstein. Little is known about its history, but a spring in the castle cave points to a possible use as a refuge in times of need. Contrary to expectations, the name Grottenstein is not derived from the word grotto in the sense of cave. Rather, the cave castle was originally called Chrottenstein, where Chrott means "toad". The reference to the toad now allows for completely different associations. The coinage as a toad place as well as local legends of a white virgin who guards sunken treasures and guards unborn souls inside the mountain build mysterious bridges to mythology. In numerous legends, the toad and the white virgin appear as opposite manifestations of the same entity that often guards a hidden gold treasure in caves and castle ruins. The promising gold treasure is analogous to the basic maxim of alchemy, but is probably to be understood above all as a symbol for an inner spiritual treasure, an essential developmental step or a realization.