Black Forest

(Local Name: Schwarzwald) Land: Baden-Württemberg

Situation and characteristics

The Black Forest, with its dark forest-covered hills, is one of the most visited upland regions in Europe. It lies in the southwestern corner of Germany, extending for 160km/100mi from Pforzheim in the north to Waldshut, on the High Rhine, in the south. At the northern end it is some 20km/12.5mi wide, at the southern end 60km/40mi. On the west side it descends to the Rhine valley in a steep scarp which is slashed by well watered valleys; on the east it slopes more gently down to the upper Neckar and Danube valleys. The main ridge is broken up by numerous valleys, with flat-topped summits rising to only a moderate height above it. Popular winter sports centers in the Black Forest, Germany's oldest skiing area (the first "snowshoe club" having been founded at Todtnau in 1891), are Freudenstadt, the Kniebis plateau, Dobel, Baiersbronn, Triberg and surrounding area, Furtwangen, Neustadt-Titisee, Lenzkirch and the Feldberg and surrounding area. The northern Black Forest is more suited for langlauf skiing, while the best areas for Alpine skiing are around the Feldberg, Belchen and Herzogenhorn.