Feldberg

Yesterday, Stefan and I drove southeast to the Feldberg, the highest mountain in the Black Forest, and the highest point in Germany outside of the Alps. Being high means being cold. As we rose in altitude, we went from rain to hail to snow. On the peak, dense fog alternated with bright sunlight. Temperatures hovered around freezing.

Until the Middle Ages, the Schwarzwald was a rugged forest, difficult to penetrate. By the 18th century, large areas had been systematically clear cut to create grazing land and to harvest wood for the charcoal, glass making, and mineral mining industries.

The top of the Feldberg has been barren for over two centuries; in the winter, it's one of Germany's most popular skiing areas outside of the Alps. In addition to weather stations, a radio tower, a ski lift, and a Bismarck Denkmal (memorial) currently undergoing renovations, there's a tall viewing tower that looms atop the grassy peak like a lighthouse. Given the wind, the lack of trees, and the flat terrain, we half expected to see the salt spray of an ocean behind it.

On the way back to the parking area, we hiked past a truck advertising saunas and garages by a company named Brückner. "That's quite a downfall," I observed, "to go from epic symphonies to saunas"; Stefan rolled his eyes and replied, "it doesn't say Bruckner, it says Brückner!" What a world of difference an umlaut makes.