Sophienhöhle

The Sophienhöhle is a natural karst cave near Kirchahorn in the Franconian Switzerland region, with three large sections and winding passages.

Ahorntal 900m

The Sophienhöhle is a natural karst cave near Kirchahorn in the Franconian Switzerland region, with three large sections and winding passages.

Characteristics

• Type: Cave
• Municipality: Ahorntal
• Length: 900 meters
• Record updated: November 13, 2026

Caves are protected biotopes (§30 BNatSchG).

Location

The Sophienhöhle is located near Kirchahorn, a district of the Upper Franconian municipality of Ahorntal in the district of Bayreuth in Bavaria, on the northwestern edge of the Ailsbach valley, not far from Rabenstein Castle in the Franconian Switzerland region.

Map

Entrances

Always verify coordinates and access conditions before setting out.

1. Sophienhöhle

   49.826974, 11.375764
   UTM 32U (ETRS89) 670866.1660004513 5522100.728998758
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Photos

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Rainer Lippert · Public Domain Mark 1.0, https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/ · Wikimedia Commons · https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sophienh%C3%B6hle,_Eingang.jpg

© Ermell · CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ · Wikimedia Commons · https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Klaussteinkapelle_Sophienh%C3%B6hle-20210815-RM-102858.jpg

© Pascal Dihé · CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ · Wikimedia Commons · https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:472H009_-_Sophienh%C3%B6hle_-_Sinterfahne.jpg

© Pascal Dihé · CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ · Wikimedia Commons · https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:472H009_-_Sophienh%C3%B6hle_-_Der_Million%C3%A4r.jpg

© Spike · CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ · Wikimedia Commons · https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sophienh%C3%B6hle_Entrance_Panorama_01.jpg

© Pascal Dihé · CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ · Wikimedia Commons · https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:472H009_-_Sophienh%C3%B6hle_-_Tropfsteine.jpg

Image 1 of 6

Description

Morphology

The Sophienhöhle is a natural karst cave. With its three large sections and winding passages, it is regarded as one of the most beautiful show caves in Germany.

Speleothems

The Sophienhöhle is a dripstone cave.

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Source: Geotopkataster Bayern (Bayerisches Landesamt für Umwelt) (www.umweltatlas.bayern.de), modified. CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Datenquelle: Bayerisches Landesamt für Umwelt, www.lfu.bayern.de · https://www.umweltatlas.bayern.de/mapapps/resources/reports/sb_geotope/generateBericht.pdf?additionallayerfieldvalue=472H009 · data as of 2026 · Contains information from Grottocenter (Wikicaves), grottocenter.org, made available under the Open Database License (ODbL 1.0, https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/1-0/), modified. · length · obtained 2026-11-13 · https://grottocenter.org/ui/entrances/23621 · data as of 2026 · Contains information from © OpenStreetMap contributors, www.openstreetmap.org, made available under the Open Database License (ODbL 1.0, https://opendatacommons.org/licenses/odbl/1-0/), modified. · https://www.openstreetmap.org/node/25631399 · data as of 2026 · Source: Wikidata – cave items (Germany) (www.wikidata.org), modified. CC0 1.0, https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ Wikidata (CC0 1.0) · data as of 2026 · Source: German Wikipedia – article leads (cave descriptions) (de.wikipedia.org), modified. CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ Wikipedia contributors (de.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0 · Text by Wikipedia contributors (Sophienhöhle) · adapted by Espeleoworld (normalized, translated); the adaptation is licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ · description · obtained 2026-11-13 · https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophienh%C3%B6hle · data as of 2026 · The derived data is available on request under the ODbL: [email protected]