Feldberg (Black Forest)

The Feldberg is situated southeast of Freiburg im Breisgau and is surrounded by the municipalities of Hinterzarten (northeast), Titisee (east), Menzenschwand (south), Bernau (also south) and Todtnau (southwest). About two kilometres southeast of the summit lies the village of Feldberg (1,277 metres (4,190 ft)).

Between the main peak (1,493 metres (4,898 ft), also known as the Höchste or "Highest", and its subpeak, the Seebuck (1,448 metres (4,751 ft)), just under 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) away, is a saddle, the Grüble, from which a wide spur, the Baldenweger Buck (1,460 metres (4,790 ft)) branches off. The saddle initially descends gently and then ever more steeply into the valleys on either side. From the Seebuck the Feldberg drops steeply away to the northeast into the Feldsee, a lake of glacial origin at about 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) altitude. Deeply incised valleys run northwest towards Freiburg (the Zastler and St Wilhelmer valleys) and southwest towards Basle (Wiesental valley).

The main car park below the Seebuck can be reached from the B317 (federal highway) running from Titisee to Lörrach (near Basle) over the Feldberg Pass. A train service of the Three Lakes Railway serves the station of Feldberg-Bärental, at 967 metres (3,173 ft), the highest DB station on standard gauge track. A bus service connects with the station. The Seebuck, which is topped by an old transmission tower, the Feldberg Tower, once a radio tower, since 2013 a ham museum[1] can be reached from the valley station in Feldberg-Ort on a short chairlift. From this point the summit of the Feldberg is about two kilometres (1+1⁄4 mi) away. It is only accessible to the public on foot or by bicycle.

The numerous point-to-point radio systems of the Bundeswehr and the American and French armies dating from the Cold War period have been since taken down. Today Feldberg is marked by the old and new television towers and the Bismarck monument on the Seebuck.

Altogether there are more than 28 ski lifts and slopes around the Feldberg. The actual summit itself is situated outside the skiing areas. Several cross-country skiing trails around the peak and around Herzogenhorn opposite are popular with cross-country skiers. The whole area, with ski-runs of Alpine character, is popular for ski touring.

Feldberg

The mountain's bedrock of gneiss is around one billion years old. The Feldberg region was uplifted three times and then eroded again. What exists today can be called the "third Feldberg". The "first Feldberg" was formed in the Precambrian as part of an orogen and was then completely eroded away. The "second Feldberg" arose during the Devonian and Carboniferous, as part of the Variscan orogeny. It, too, was eroded away, and, during the Mesozoic and Early Triassic, beds of Bunter sandstone, Muschelkalk, Keuper, Lias, Dogger and Malm were deposited in the resulting sedimentation space. Some of these sediments are maritime deposits from intercontinental oceans; the others are of continental origin. The "third" and current Feldberg was formed during the Alpine orogeny in the Tertiary. Since then these sediments have been steadily removed through water processes and aeolian erosion, and today little but the bedrock remains.

During the height of the Würm glaciation a glacier, 1,000 km² in area, covered the Black Forest. As a result, a lot of glacial influence can be seen in the region. There are several features that relate to the glacial morphology of the Feldberg. Firstly, there is the Feldsee. This tarn formed in the hollow that was scoured out by the ice pushing down the headwall of the cirque. Gradually the ice created a bowl that now holds the 33-metre-deep Feldsee. A moraine on the shores of the Feldsee testifies to this process.

The Feldseemoor, a few metres away, is also a remnant of the ice age. Here the terminal moraine of the "mini glacier" can be seen from the Feldsee. It has impounded water and formed a bog. The glacial history of the Würm stage, 10,000–11,000 years ago, at the Feldberg evolved as follows: The emergence of the Feldsee happened as the "Feldberg glacier" spread out. The adjacent Feldseemoor was the next stage. The glaciers then formed a moraine at Waldhof. This was exceeded once more at the Falkau, which marks its maximum extent. After that, the glacier retreated again.

The Feldberg, like many low mountain ranges, is often underestimated in terms of its alpine dangers. Its easy accessibility by public transport, car and cable car suggests that it is not dangerous and, consequently, visitors may be inappropriately equipped or dressed. The main dangers in the Feldberg region are sudden falls in temperature, storms or slipping on smooth, icy ground. Near tall structures such as the transmission masts there is the danger falling ice. In fog or mist, orientation is clearly much more difficult. Often visibility is reduced to just a few metres. Marked paths outside the wooded areas are lined with poles to assist navigation.

Every winter there are several large avalanches in the Feldberg region. The mountainsides of the Zastler valley are particularly prone, but they also occur on leeward slopes like the Feldseekessel at Seebuck, the Herzogenhorn and the Baldenweger Buck. Snowfall driven by western winds forms cornices on the downwind sides of ridges (e. g. the Zastler Wechte), which can break off. Several fatal avalanche burials have happened, the last in January 2015 which left two dead.[5] There are no special avalanche reports issued for the Black Forest.

Avalanche slope in the Zastler Loch

During the Cold War there were many antennas on a military tower at the summit, but these were removed some years ago. Today, there is a large TV / radio transmission mast, used by the regional broadcasting station, SWR (Southwest Broadcasting). In addition, the mountain is recognisable from its Bismarck Monument, in honour of the famous 19th-century chancellor of Germany, Otto von Bismarck.

At the top of the mountain (where weather has been surveyed since 1915) is a weather station that has been in operation since 1937, run by the German Meteorological Service (WMO code number: 10908). Next to the observatory is a weather radar.

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  Weather station
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  Aerial photograph
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  Weather radar with the new Feldberg Tower in the background

• (in German) Feldberg:History and images
• Feldberg:Image Gallery Archived 1 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine
• Webcams: regiowebcam.de
• "Feldberg, Germany". Peakbagger.com.