Trail with a view. The church can only be reached on foot. For years now our family has been the keeper of the big key to the church. Setting out at our farm you head west for 200 metres to the village church. Then you follow a field path on the left marked “Kreuzweg – St. Leonhard-Kirche“. The dirt track will take you uphill – in some places it can get quite steep, so you will need sturdy shoes. Once you have reached the clearing you will be awarded a splendid view over the Gailtal valley and the opposite mountain range. From here you can already see the church.

Church with a view. The heavy ironclad wooden door is tricky to open, but nowhere else will you find a church that welcomes its visitors with such an oddly profound sense of comfort and silence that instantly takes hold of body and mind. Now take a look at the unique, painted stencil-wood ceiling dating back to around 1480. On it you will be able to make out dragons, snakes and all sorts of different symbols: silent witnesses of times long gone! It was, it is and it always will be – is what immediately comes to mind. Then again, everything in life’s cycle undergoes constant change. Were you considering changing anything in your life? If you were, how about starting right now! After all, it’s never too late for starting anew, even if you only take tiny steps!

Room for insights. Before you leave the church, don’t forget to pull the bell-rope in the altar room to chime Carinthia’s oldest church bell. In front of the church there is a moss-covered spot which beckons visitors to rest, the bench on the west side is an ideal place to pause for a moment and picture ancient times.
Despite its nearness to the Italian border and a number of historical events, this structure has remained unscathed over many centuries – a truly protected spot!

To return, you only have to continue the path uphill to the village of Schlanitzen where you turn right and will reach our village Tröpolach after a half-hour walk through the woods along a tarmac road.