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.
The famous and very popular Schwarzwald-Hochstrasse follows the crest of the hills through magnificent fir forests, with extensive views, from Baden-Baden along the Hornisgrinde to the Kniebis plateau at Freudenstadt. The southward continuation of the road runs from Triberg to Waldshut.
The central Black Forest, between the Kinzig valley and the Höllental, consists mainly of granite and gneiss, and reaches its highest point in the Kandel (1,241m/4,072ft), between the beautiful Simonswald, Elz and Glotter valleys. The area most popular with tourists is the stretch along the Schwarzwaldbahn (Black Forest Railway), centered on Triberg with its famous falls. To the east the central Black Forest merges into the Baar plateau, which in turn leads into the Swabian Alb. In the central Black Forest there are Triberg spas with the neighboring resorts of Schonach and Schönwald, Konigsfeld, St Märgen, the Glotter valley and Europe's highest brine spa, Bad Dürrheim (700-850m/2,300-2,800ft).
The Schwarzwald-Bäderstrasse is a 270km/170mi long circuit which takes in a series of spas between Pforzheim and Freudenstadt (Bad Liebenzell, Bad Teinach, Freudenstadt, Bad Rippoldsau, Wildbad, Bad Herrenalb, Baden-Baden, Waldbronn).
The Schwarzwald-Tälerstrasse begins at Rastatt and ascends the Murg valley, passing the imposing Schwarzenbach Dam, and then continues by way of Freudenstadt, where it meets the Black Forest Ridgeway, to Alpirsbach.
The Black Forest Museum has 18 exhibition rooms that reveal the unique lifestyles and traditions of the Black Forest region. It contains collections of art and craft pieces as well as furniture pieces and personal artifacts.
Address: Black Forest Museum, Wallfahrtsstrasse 4, D-78098 Triberg, Germany
Read More
Read Less
Read More
Read Less
Read More
Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden
Freiburg im Breisgau
Black Forest
