EuroYank My BlackForest Germany

Festival Folk Music of the Homeland

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Introduction Black Forest Area Germany

Trainride In The Black Forest

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Black Forest Germany Introduction

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The economic and intellectual center of southwest Germany not only lies at the foot of the Black Forest, 278 meters above sea level and surrounded by a fertile mountainous landscape, but it is also situated in the "three country corner" where Germany, Austria and Switzerland touch.

Around 28 million overnight stays per year in 138,000 beds in hotels and guest houses and a further 60,000 private rooms underline the importance of tourism for the Black Forest, and the wine regions of the south west.

The Black Forest enjoys the highest density of restaurants with top chefs, and even in the small village restaurants the entire selection of the hearty regional cuisine can be enjoyed in many of its delicious variations.

Thermal baths like Baden-Baden, Badenweiler, Bad Wildbad have a long tradition. Such a wealth of thermal springs can be found nowhere else in such close proximity.

The countryside to the south is well known for its hot springs at Badenweiler and for the many frescoes in the churches of Markgraflerland. "Baden cuisine" and wine-making villages are to the west.

The Black Forest covers an area of over 400 square miles. Its name conveys an image of dense tangled forest, but nothing could be further from the truth.

The area is wooded but there are also vast open tracts of undulating hills peppered with attractive traditional villages and half-timbered houses.

Hiking the Black Forest

With or without luggage, with hiking boots or trainers, carbon sticks or telescope rods - no other mountain range has a more professional and varied range of attractions on offer than the Black Forest.

Nearly all trails in the hiking regions of Germany are extremely well-marked and maintained. Via a mountain ridge path, hikers can reach the highest point of the Northern Black Forest, which is Mount Hornisgrinde.

Beautiful cirque lakes, such as Mummelsee or the secluded Wildsee, line the route.

If you continue along this route, you will come past the European watershed, between the rivers Rhine and Danube.

This part of the route offers superb views across the deep valleys of the Western Black Forest and the flat high-lying valleys in the east.

The bare hilltops of the Feldberg area represent a kind of "sub alpine island in the low mountain range", offering a habitat for many plants of the Ice Age.

Marmots, wild boars, and the occasional deer are common as well, but most wildlife has been driven to non- existence by hunting rights, disease, and in the name of forest protection.

Nowadays, you’re more likely to be confronted with a curious-looking sheep or cow than anything else.

There are many fine open ridge walks that afford grand views over forest, pasture and mountain lakes.

The pine and birch studded mountains here are alive with fairy-tale villages, well-equipped spas, and modern ski resorts.

In no other country is Christmas more elaborately and universally celebrated. The Christmas season officially begins with the beginning of Advent, four Sundays before Christmas Day.

The tradition of the Advent wreath, a circle of greenery in which four candles are set, originated with the German Lutherans. One candle is lit the first Sunday of Advent, two are lit the second Sunday, and so on until the fourth Sunday.

A large white candle in the center is lit on Christmas Day. The Advent calendar, an elaborate calendar with windows used to count down the days until Christmas, also originated in Germany.

The Christmas Tree owes its widespread popularity to Germany. In the Middle Ages the Germans would put on a mystery play each December 24th, the feast day of Adam and Eve.

The plays invariably featured a decorated evergreen which represented the Tree of Life from which Adam and Eve ate and as a result were banished from the Garden of Eden.

Over the centuries the plays and associated festivities strayed from their religious origins and the Church ceased to sponsor them. But the people continued to set up and decorate a tree in their home every year at Christmas.

In 1880 glassmakers in Germany discovered how to make blown glass balls and bells, which became the decorations used to trim Christmas trees all over the world. St. Nicholas has traditionally brought gifts to German children on the eve of his feast day, December 6.

St. Nick is today is increasingly known as Father Christmas throughout Germany and appears not on St. Nicholas Day Eve, but on Christmas Eve.

In Germany, as in many European countries, the highpoint of the Christmas season is Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. A midnight service is celebrated by both Catholics and Protestants.

Thickly wooded and, for centuries, isolated and mysterious, people called this the Black Forest (Schwarzwald.) Now, rather than black, it's a bright and sunny vacation land. But even today, in remote villages and farmsteads, local dialects survive and traditions are strong.

The Black Forest, rich and dense, beautiful and serene, is the stuff of legends, and has been the inspiration for many of the world's most beloved fairy tales.

It was here that little Hansel and Gretel got lost and stumbled upon the ghastly witch and her gingerbread cottage. No doubt, Little Red Riding Hood and a host of others were drawn from the dark depths of the Schwarzwald as well.

Christmas in the Black Forest of Germany is a time for special crafts, candles, scents, spiced wines, gingerbread, roasted goose, smoked ham, special cheeses, spiced fruits, and cakes, and candies, and chocolates, and pastries, and decorations.

Germans build up to Christmas gradually, starting their celebration on Saint Martin'sDay, the eleventh of November. This feast day honors a Roman soldier who shared his cloak with a shivering beggar.

The impoverished man was actually the disguised Christ according to the wonderful legend. The tradition of gift giving, as exemplified by the concerned saint, has continued to this day, much to the delight of youngsters who are the principal beneficiaries of all the goodies.

On that day, as well, children carry lanterns and torches through the winding village streets. At night, high on the hills over the towns, they will light fires; the blazes, signifying light and hope in the advent of winter, can be seen for miles.

Next comes Saint Nicholas Day on the sixth of December, another holiday expressly for children who again receive gifts of fruit and candy.

From the Saint Nicholas character, which probably stems from a medieval king figure, we in the United States get our own Santa Claus with his white beard and elaborate red costume.

The German Nicholas rides about on a great white horse, followed by his grimy and grumpy manservant who usually goes by the name of Ruprecht.

This character hands out gifts to the good youngsters and punishes the bad ones, including-supposedly-dipping them into a giant ink pot!

The annual Christmas market opens early in December, offering for sale almost every imaginable holiday item from candles to candy.

Many town centers are crammed with tiny stalls dis-playing oodles of decorations, trees, baked goods, and similar delights.

If you can't find a present here, you just haven't looked long enough! Youngsters love wandering from booth to booth in these Christmas fairs or "Christ Child markets," as they are sometimes called. Many markets date from the 1300s.

As the time gets closer to Christmas, the weather turns colder. The markets become quiet, almost hushed, as the vendors huddle over their tiny coal-fed fires. Last-minute shop-pers are the same anywhere as they rush around stocking up on wares.

For the child who plans ahead, a list of wishes is a must. Childrens notes are often addressed to Father Christmas or to the Christ Child and are gaily decorated with bright illustrations. The feeling is that the better the drawings, the more gifts are forthcoming.

All the stores close promptly at one in the afternoon on Christmas Eve as everyone hurries home to put on their best clothes and sit down to a magnificent supper. While the children are eating, the parents slip the pres-ents under the tree in the front room.

As soon as the first church bells sound the call to Vespers, an evening prayer service in the Catholic districts of Germany, the head of the house rings a tiny bell to tell everyone that Father Christmas has arrived.

The youngest child has the lucky duty of opening the door to the room with all the presents. The resulting scene as everyone crowds around the tree is best left to the imagination!

Even with all the gift giving and the huge meals, the true spirit of Christmas is never forgotten. Both Catholic and Protestant faiths offer midnight services in the country's great cathedrals and tiny village churches.

The sounds of carols flow over the wintry country-side as easily as new fallen snow.

Everything is awash with light because many parishioners bring their own candles and lanterns to church. It is traditional to keep silent on the way to the Christmas liturgy, but once the services are over, everyone explodes with holiday greetings.

Then it's home to bed and dreams of toys and sugarplums.Festive meals round out Christmas Day, and more gifts are exchanged as relatives and friends drop by to say hello and offer holiday greetings.

In the center of all this hubbub stands the Christmas tree, one of the best exports that Germany had for the rest of us. Candles are still used to decorate the silver or blue spruce that seems to be most popular.

Giant firs stand outside public buildings, decorated by means of firemen's ladders. Offices and homes seem to outdo each other with their decorations. In several places, living trees are given the honor of being the community's official Yule tree.

So from gift giving to marzipan to beautiful carols, Germany has long given treasured cus-toms to the rest of the world. Even after a full and happy Christmas Day, the festivities don't end. There's Saint Stephen's Day to celebrate on the twenty-sixth of December, leading into the Holy Twelve Nights that extend to Epiphany, the Feast of the Three Kings, on the sixth of January.

Germans simply don't want Christmas to slip away from them, but as the days grow longer and the late winter melts into spring, they eventually turn their thoughts to other holidays. Always, in the back of their minds, however, are the dreams of the next year's Christmas.

Black Forest Special Info ...

*Special Black Forest Video
*The Adventures of BJ and Tony Morris Black Forest, Germany
*The Heart of the Black Forest
*Recipes From a German Grandma
*German Foods & Crafts & Gift Links
*German Bread & Dessert Recipes

The Black Forest has a network of paths, trails and country roads for sport and adventure travel, which cover more than 14,300 miles (23,000 kilometers).

The peaks in the southern part of the forest reach as high as 1,525m (5,000 ft.) and are excellent for skiing in winter and hiking or mountain climbing in summer. Fish abound in the streams and lakes.

Link ...
*Black Forest Germany

The first travelers checked in here 19 centuries ago, when the Roman emperor Caracalla and his army soothed their battle wounds in the natural-spring waters at what later became Baden-Baden.

In the 19th century just about everyone who mattered in Europe gravitated to Baden-Baden: royalty, members of Napoléon's family, and the Russian nobility, along with actors, actresses, writers, and composers. Turgenev, Dostoyevsky, and Tolstoy were among the Russian contingent.

Victor Hugo was a frequent visitor. Brahms composed lilting melodies in this calm setting, and Mark Twain waxed poetic on the forest's beauty in his 1880 book "A Tramp Abroad."

Winter Sports Black Forest Germany

The Black Forest is the cradle of skiing and snowboarding! Folks like to tell the story of the early ski enthusiasts who established the oldest ski club in Germany in 1895 which still exists today.

Those who bring some extra endurance along with them can try hiking 100 kilometers on their skies, from Shonach to Belchen, if they dare. And for those who only want to watch, there are live international competitions!

Highlights are the Black Forest backpack run, where participants endure the 100 kilometers from Schonach to Belchen for the World Cup, and the ski-jumping tournaments in Schönwald and Neustadt.

Southern Black Forest Area (Bodensee)
Special Info ...
*Mainau Island

Black Forest Sports and Recreation

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Where Time Stands Still

If you love nature, you will absolutely adore the Black Forest in Germany. The land and villages look relatively unchanged, as if you've stepped back in time, and when you walk through the forest, you can get an insight into what ancient Germany might have been like. Some of the houses you'll find in the villages are over *three hundred years old.

Black Forest Germany is perhaps the best location for cross-country skiing. Discover over 600 miles of snowy trails through the woods and hills. There are even lit trails for those night owls that want to get in a run.

Hiking and Ski Trails

The most central town in the Black Forest is *Freudenstadt, which is the starting point for hundreds of miles of hiking and ski-trails through the nearby hills. Most visitors, however, prefer to find accommodation in guest lodges in the small villages sprinkled throughout the region, exploring by car, on foot or bicycle. See *German Resources Freudenstadt.

If you want a challenge, look for *Neustadt which boasts a great 60 mile trail.

You can find many miles of skiing treks. *Feldberg is the highest mountain in the area, and its 75 mile trail in the Black Forest is one of the most popular.

Sledding and Tobogganing

Need a break from skiing in Germany? Cozy up with a hot beverage in one of the many lodges in these resorts. If you'd rather stay outside you'll often find sledding and tobogganing. See *Black Forest Sports.

Stuttgart

Sitting near the *Neckar River and ringed by verdant forests and vineyards, Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in south western Germany. The city's center rests comfortably in a valley and has a population of approximately a half million. Stuttgart is one of the best known and acclaimed German towns due to its cultural and economic importance.

Originally founded in the tenth century, Stuttgart previously was known by the name Stuttengarten ("mare garden") and was used as place for breeding horses for the Emperor's cavalry. It acquired its present name as an abbreviation of Stuttengarten. Later, Stuttgart gained prominence by becoming the residence of the dukes of Württemberg.

During World War II though, the center of the city was almost completely destroyed by air raids. After the war, the Marshall Plan merged the two states of Baden and Württemberg and declared Stuttgart as its capital.

The history of Stuttgart Germany hosts several important inventions. Two of these include the creation of the motorcycle, and the four-wheeled automobile.

The city was the start of the automotive industry and car manufacturing remains prominent in it today. Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and Maybach are all made in Stuttgart. Additionally, the first design of the Volkswagen Beetle was produced there.

Further cementing Stuttgart's importance as an economic center is its stock exchange--it's the second largest in the nation behind *Frankfurt's. Also see *Freiburg,Germany. As a result of this, many important German companies keep their headquarters in Stuttgart.

But there's more to Stuttgart, both in history and in present times, than automobiles, and high tech industry. The city is famous for its culture and vineyards with a rich wine-making tradition.
See *Stuttgart Landmarks

Nature Abundant

Those that love red wine will find it here. Over half of the vineyards here contain red wine varieties. The rare "Trollinger," can be found here and hardly anywhere else. Full-bodied vintages are the norm with some light and fruity ones also available.

Parks and lakes, forests, fields, orchards and vineyards cover more than half the area within Stuttgart's city boundaries. Read more *Stuttgart Nature and Greenery

Backpacking the Black Forest

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The Westweg (Western Trail)

The 285km "Westweg" was created in 1900 to establish and mark the first long-distance hiking route from Pforzheim, Germany (northern Black Forest) to Basel Switzerland(southern Black Forest.) It has been managed and cared for by the Black Forest Society (90,000 members) for over 100 years.

The Westweg is the oldest of the high level walking routes in the Black Forest. The walk can be completed in 11 days with daily distances ranging from 20 up to 35 km.

Pforzheim is the door to the Black Forest, and is known as the Golden city where gold has been mined and jewelry handcrafted for over 200 years. It sits at the junction of three rivers (the Würm, the Enz, and the Nagold) and is one of the Black Forest's largest settlements. (120,000)

Tourist Info Pforzheim

Pforzheim Jewelry Museum - the world's only jewelry museum. The major focus of the museum's collection is on jewelry from Greek and Etruscan-Roman antiquity, the Renaissance and the Baroque as well as a unique range of contemporary designer jewelry from the last 40 years. Of particular importance is the large collection of rings, dating from antiquity to the present. Its collection includes ornaments from the 3rd century B.C. to modern times.

See more ... *The History of Jewelry
With 620 Jewelry Manufacturers, 70% of German Jewelry is produced in Pforzheim.

Monastery Maulbronn - best preserved medieval monastery north of the Alps. Most of its more than 30 stone-sided buildings were constructed between 1150 and 1390, within an encircling wall that protected the monks from outside attackers. The compound's church combines aspects of Romanesque and Gothic architecture. A complicated irrigation system still intact.

See more ... *Splendor of Maulbronn Monastery

Alpine Garden - The garden, on the banks of the Würm River, stocks more than 100,000 varieties of high altitude plants, including the rarest Alpine flowers. It has a pleasant café and florist shop. See more ... *Alpine Garden photo gallery

The West Route, the most well known route along the main crest of the Black Forest, has lost none of its charm over the years. Those who make the 285 km journey, climbing to an altitude

of more than 5500 metres,the trekking allows hikers to experience nature in a unique way,

passing by numerous historical monuments and with the option of staying at excellent hotels offering the famous regional cuisine and all the little luxuries.

In addition to the West Route, there are also a large number of other hiking routes which run north to south and east to west, making up an extensive network of long-distance routes covering around 7000 km.

It passes by the Mummelsee, the highest of the Black Forest’s glacial lakes.

In the early morning mist, with black pines looming over the dark waters,

the myths of ghosts and mermaids that still surround the lake become believable.

The walk covers steep sections of the Kinzig valley, but the ascent is worthwhile for views over the sheer, fissured gorges towards the Rhine, contrasting with much gentler slopes that lead away to the Danube.The final section climbs over the Feldberg (1,493m), before dividing into two paths. The first traverses the Belchen and Blauen summits while the second follows the ridge with the Herzogenhorn and Hochkopf peaks.

Both descend to Basel, with glorious views over the Vosges, the Rhine valley and the Alps.
Two further high-level walks, the Mittelweg and Ostweg are both about 240km long, and, like the Westweg, begin in Pforzheim.

At first the Mittelweg runs parallel to the Westweg, but after the two ways meet at the Hohlch summit (984m), the Mittelweg continues south to pass through Freudenstadt, location of Germany’s largest marketplace.

Southeast of Freudenstadt you enter the Lossburg nature park. It was designed to relieve the stresses of the day. The mystery and magic of nature come alive;the four elements of earth, water, fire, and air are the themes highlighted.

The special herbs in the woods, the nearby streams, and meadows of flowers combine to awaken all your senses. From May to October special planned activities.

Special Links in English ...
*Alpirsbach
*Schiltach

Further on you encounter the Titisee and Schluchsee lakes.

The Ostweg crosses more fields and meadows than the other two routes, providing open vistas across the Black Forest and its eastern valleys. Other highlights include beautiful beech woods, the Nagold, Danube and Wutach rivers, and towns such as Calw, and medieval Schaffhausen where the walk finishes.

This is the quietest of the high-level routes.

The lovely city of Freiburg with its elaborate Gothic cathedral and pretty streams that run through the old town’s streets is the starting point of the Kandelhohenweg and the Querweg Freiburg–Bodensee walks.

The 133km Kandelhohenweg is a north–south path that rises steeply from Freiburg to the most westerly of the high peaks, the Kandel (1,241m).

It then travels through wooded hills to the Kinzig valley, over the Mooskopf forest highland and down to Oberkirch in the Rench valley.

The 178km Querweg Freiburg– Bodensee leaves Freiburg and climbs to the highland through the Höllental (Hell valley), a dramatic gorge equally matched by the Wutachschlucht that follows.

Here, the river rushes through steep cliffs. When swollen with melted snow in spring, the impressiveness of the waters can make the rest of the journey to Konstanz on the Bodensee (Lake Constance) tame in comparison.

For walkers who prefer flatter ground, the 158km Rheinaue-Weg from Kehl to Basel follows the Rhine valley. It offers a contrasting viewpoint, looking up into the hills rather than down into the valleys.

In summer, walkers can sample local delicacies such as fresh asparagus and new wine, as the route passes through many of the region’s vineyards.

By far the easiest way to organise a walking holiday in the Black Forest is to take advantage of one of the ‘hiking without luggage’ schemes, whereby accommodation and walking routes can be arranged before arrival.

Planned tours cover all areas of the Black Forest, often using sections of the major pathways, and each route provides insights into the Black Forest’s varied culture and geography.

The Clock Carriers’ Trail follows in the footsteps of the door-to-door cuckoo clock salesmen, intrepid travellers who would walk miles on foot in the 18th and 19th centuries to sell the region’s famous product.

The Red Deer Trail offers a chance to explore some of the loveliest nature reserves and woodland scenes in the north, while the Feldberg Circular Trail tours the southern region around the Feldberg. Other trails explore the nature and gorges of the southern hills, or visit man-made features such as mills, castles and picturesque historical towns.

The region’s wines, such as the Kaiserstuhl, Müller-Thurgau and Traminer, are delicious. The Ortenauer Winepath from Baden-Baden to Offenburg wanders through many of the vineyards on the Black Forest’s sunny west slopes. Walkers can obtain a pass for areas normally closed during the grape harvest, and enjoy the region’s produce in the evening.

The local schnapps can also help liven the spirits. The most popular include Kirschwasser (cherry), Zwetschken (purple plum), Mirabelle (golden plum) and Himbeergeist (raspberry). Other delights include Spätzle, a form of egg pasta, particularly tasty served with melted cheese and fried onions; wild mushrooms; schnitzel; and of course, Black Forest gâteau.

For walkers who prefer flatter ground, the 158km Rheinaue-Weg from Kehl to Basel follows the Rhine valley. It offers a contrasting viewpoint, looking up into the hills rather than down into the valleys.

In summer, walkers can sample local delicacies such as fresh asparagus and new wine, as the route passes through many of the region’s vineyards.

All along the walking routes, traditional guesthouses with typical Black Forest cuisine entice guests to indulge their appetites.

If for nothing else, a holiday in the Black Forest is worth it alone for the food. And experiencing the culinary excellence of the Black Forest does not necessarily mean a trip to one of the renowned top restaurants of the region with their many crests, stars and cooking spoons.

Welcome to Freiburg

Vacation rentals Upper Black Forest *Culinary Highlights in Germany's South West

A quick glance on the menu of the village guest house will often reveal a surprising selection of culinary treats. Dishes from the Baden and Swabian tradition such as goose liver "gugelhupf", Venison "Baden-Baden", vanilla and poppy seed cake or Black Forest gateau turn a normal holiday into an epicurean delight.

Culinary pleasures are also accompanied by traditional Baden wines. Connoisseurs will appreciate the full flavour of the Gutedel, Müller-Thurgau, Riesling, Silvaner, Grau- und Weißburgunder, Bacchus, Chardonnay, Nobling, Muskateller, Kerner, Traminer and Blau Spätburgunder.

Wine cellars invite guests to test both their best vintages and new specialities and wine festivals are celebrated throughout the entire summer and autumn. In Breisbach on the tip of the Kaiserstuhl, Europe's most significant wine cellar is to be found.

Region Wines

Apart from the urban centers of Stuttgart and Heilbronn, Württemberg is a rural, hilly countryside with vineyards and orchards scattered amidst forests and fields. Most of the terraced vineyards of the past have been reorganized to improve efficiency.

However, a number still exist, notably the so-called "cliff gardens" near the Neckar's scenic loops between Besigheim and Mundelsheim. With more than half of its vineyards planted with red wine varieties, Württemberg ranks as Germany's premier red wine region.

The main variety is Trollinger, seldom found outside of this region, followed by Schwarzriesling, also known as Müllerrebe or Pinot Meunier, and Lemberger.

An additional 2,270 acres are planted with Spätburgunder, Dornfelder and Portugieser. Much of the wine is light, fruity and easy to enjoy; but deep-colored, rich, full-bodied red wine with great class is also produced here.

Riesling is an important variety in Württemberg, accounting for nearly a quarter of the vineyard area, followed by Kerner and Müller-Thurgau. Kerner, a crossing of Trollinger and Riesling, was bred at the region's oenological research and teaching institute in Weinsberg.

In general, the wines are hearty and full-bodied, with a vigorous acidity.

A proper "Vesper" is typical for the Black Forest region. In actual fact the Vesper is taken between meals and comprises hearty home made sausage, smoked trout and Black Forest ham with crusty farmer's bread. A real Vesper is always accompanied by a "Wässerli". Today, even the local residents of the Black Forest eat Vesper in place of their evening meal.

For breakfast or as a small snack - those are the occasions when Black Forest ham appears on the table. The discovery long ago of the ham both as a tasty ingredient in other dishes and as delicious culinary specialty in its own right is reflected in its use in many of the asparagus dishes of the region. The secret of "authentic" Black Forest ham: A long wait. The production process lasts around three months. Luckily every good chef in the Black Forest always has a good stock of the well matured ham.

Whether it's to round off the evening meal or after the Vesper, a "Wässerli" is tradition. High proof alcoholic fruit schnapps from cherries, plums, pears or greengages has been made in this region for generations. With more than 14,000 distilleries, the Black Forest has the highest density in the world. Even the more extravagant schapps like the "Zibärtle" from sloe plums is distilled here.

Where culinary pleasures stand so high on the list of priorities, the gourmet chefs are also to be found. 11 of the 100 best German chefs are to be found in restaurants in the Black Forest.

For families and groups of friends the pleasures of food may result rather indirectly from some other attraction. Perhaps the knight's table in a fortress or the mill festival. Perhaps the ancient feast event, a culinary experience like it was 100 years ago - the kids certainly will enjoy that.

Almost every holiday location in the Black Forest offers gastronomical highlights a la Black Forest.

Videos: See what they are doing in the Black Forest

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Watch these German videos (you can figure it out)
See what they are doing in the Black Forest ...
*German Videos "Badische Zeitung" Online
(click Video fur DSL, a video window
pops up then hit the arrow to play)

*Sign up for the Student Holidays Newsletter
(end of page)

Zeppelin Invented In Black Forest Germany

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Ferdinand Zeppelin was born on July 8, 1838 on the German shores of Lake Constance (Konstanz on der Bodensee, bordered by Austria, Switzerland and Germany).

Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin (center) Photo 1863,
serving for the Union in the American Civil War

He entered the Prussian army in 1858 and went to the United States in 1863 to work as a military observer for the Union army. Zeppelin served in the Franco-German War of 1870-1871; he retired in 1891 with the rank of brigadier general.

The First Zeppelin

Zeppelin took keen interest in balloon flight and devoted himself to the design and construction of airships. Graf (Count) von Zeppelin would invent the rigid-frame airship (Luftschiff) in Friedrichshafen, Germany. The LZ1 made her maiden voyage on July 2, 1900. This ship had a rigid frame and served as the prototype of many subsequent models.

The first zeppelin airship consisted of a row of 17 gas cells individually covered in rubberized cloth; the whole was confined in a cylindrical framework covered with smooth surfaced cotton cloth. It was about about 420 ft long and 38 ft in diameter; the hydrogen-gas capacity totaled 399,000 cu ft.

The ship was steered by forward and aft rudders and was driven by two 15-hp Daimler internal-combustion engines, each rotating two propellers. Passengers, crew, and engine were carried in two aluminum gondolas suspended forward and aft. At its first trial, on July 2, 1900, the airship carried five persons; it attained an altitude of 1300 ft and flew a distance of 3.75 miles in 17 minutes.

Despite many setbacks, Zeppelin continued his research and in 1910 one of his airships provided the first commercial air service for passengers.

Zeppelin continued to improve his design and build airships for the German government. In June 1910, the Deutschland became the world's first commercial airship. The Sachsen followed in 1913.

Between 1910 and the beginning of World War I in 1914, German zeppelins flew 107,208 (172,535 kilometers) miles and carried 34,028 passengers and crew safely.

At the beginning of World War I, Germany had ten zeppelins. In the First World War war effort Zeppelins were built for the Germany navy. By 1918, 67 zeppelins had been constructed, and 16 survived the war.

During the war, the Germans used zeppelins as bombers. On May 31, 1915, the LZ-38 was the first zeppelin to bomb London, and other bombing raids on London and Paris followed. The airships could approach their targets silently and fly at altitudes above the range of British and French fighters.

However, they never became effective offensive weapons. New planes with more powerful engines that could climb higher were built, and the British and French planes also began to carry ammunition that contained phosphorus, which would set the hydrogen-filled zeppelins afire.

Several zeppelins were also lost because of bad weather, and 17 were shot down because they could not climb as fast as the fighters. The crews also suffered from cold and oxygen deprivation when they climbed above 10,000 feet (3,048 meters).

At the end of the war, the German zeppelins that had not been captured were surrendered to the Allies by the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, and it looked like the Zeppelin company would soon disappear.

However, Eckener, who had assumed the company's helm upon Count Zeppelin's death in 1917, suggested to the U.S. government that the company build a huge zeppelin for the U.S. military to use, which would allow the company to stay in business.

Los Angeles US Navy Zeppelin 1924
See more ...
*USS Los Angeles (ZR-3)

The United States agreed, and on October 13, 1924, the U.S. Navy received the German ZR3 (also designated the LZ-126), delivered personally by Eckener. The airship, renamed the Los Angeles, could accommodate 30 passengers and had sleeping facilities similar to those on a Pullman railroad car.

The Los Angeles made some 250 flights, including trips to Puerto Rico and Panama. It also pioneered airplane launch and recovery techniques that would later be used on U.S. airships.

The Hindenburg flying over New York City on its way to
Lakehurst, New Jersey, May 6, 1937 shortly before blowing up.

After the war they were widely used in commercial flights. However, safety problems that led to accidents, including the crash of the Hindenburg in 1937, brought on the end of the zeppelin's popularity.

The Graf Zeppelin 1933 arriving
for the Chicago World's Fair

The World's Most Successful Airship

The Graf Zeppelin was the largest airship in the world when it was built, in the late 1920s. The Graf Zeppelin flew over 1 million miles, including the first circumnavigation of the globe via airship.

It visited the North Pole, circled the world and ran regular scheduled service from Germany to Brazil until the 1937 Hindenburg crash in New Jersey brought an end to passenger airship service.

Listen to a live recording of the disaster (2 sites) ...

*Hindenburg Disaster Recording 1
*Zeppelin Hindenburg Disaster Recording 2

The Zeppelin era came to a sudden end with the Hindenburg disaster in Lakehurst, New Jersey on May 6, 1937. The Hindenburg (LZ129) had departed Frankfurt am Main on May 3 with 97 passengers and crew aboard.

Helium a non flameable alternative gas, was not used largely because the United States, the only source of helium in the world at the time, priced a fillup at $600,000. On May 6, 1937 the Hindenburg was approaching its mooring station in Lakehurst, New Jersey, on its 11th round trip between Germany and The United States.

While landing in Lakehurst, the explosion of the hydrogen-filled airship killed 36 people. The captain of the LZ129, Max Pruss, was one of the survivors, but neither he nor anyone else could say for certain what caused the tragedy. (Pruss died in 1960.) Modern theories lean towards lightning or static electricity and the Zeppelin's highly flammable outer coating (not the hydrogen itself) as the cause.

Today's reborn Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik GmbH is hoping to open a new Zeppelin era with its smaller transport, the Zeppelin NT. Test flights began in 1997.

See more ...
*Modern German Zeppelin Airships
(German Site, Scroll down; Great photos)
*Zeppelin Museum Highlights
(German Site, more Great photos)

This next link you can see instant play videos of some exhibitions at the "German Museum" in Friedrichshafen, Germany.
*Videos Deutsches Museum

Black Forest Germany Teddy Bear Invention

2005-12-31T01:25:00.000-08:00

So begins the saga of the Teddy Bear, a phenomenal soft toy named after a President of the United States, Teddy Roosevelt.

Margarete Steiff contracted polio at the age of eighteen months, a dreaded and debilitating disease. She was destined to spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair for her left foot was totally paralyzed, her right foot was lame, and she had only partial use of her right arm.

Perhaps a lighter spirit would bemoan the slings and arrows that fate had bestowed, but Margarete proved to have strength, courage and a will to become far more than most women of her generation.

Margarete Steiff attended school and was even carried, by stronger children, to some of her classes. She learned to sew on a machine and, though painful, became proficient in hand needlework as well.

With the completion of her education she was employed as a dressmaker and succeeded not only because of her skill, but as a result of her vibrant personality.

In 1880, she made her first toy fashioned of felt and stuffed with lambs wool. The tiny elephant delighted the children who received it; as it did the adults who used it as a pin cushion.

She even sold a few (although production was limited, reaching only 29 by 1882). Soon new animals were created. Ten years later, this extraordinary woman had formed a company and applied for patents to make other playthings.

The Steiff Company of Giengen an der Brenz, Germany, produced it's first jointed stuffed bears during the 1902-1903 period. The animals were the creation of Margaret Steiff.

Steiff bears were first introduced at the 1903 Leipzig Fair, where an American buyer saw them and ordered several thousand for shipment to the US.

See the collection ....
*Steiff Teddy Bears Online

Black Forest Woodcarvings

2005-12-16T10:56:00.000-08:00

Black Forest Germany Woodcarvings
Some Samples of Traditional Woodcraft

Woodcarvings are still handmade by skilled masters as they were 200 years ago. Old clocks, original drawings of the first clocks etc. are still used and modified as patterns for new models, but the cuckoo clock in its basic form is 200 years old and has survived until now. The cuckoo clock symbolizes the past, present and the future.

Black Forest Germany Clockmaking

2005-12-15T02:41:00.000-08:00

In the 17th century the Black Forest was a hard place. Europe was going through a mini-ice age, and it was so cold during the winters that milk sometimes froze in the pail between the barn and the house.

People began to make clocks in their homes during the long, harsh winters. These clocks soon became an important source of income

The first Black Forest Cuckoo Clock was designed and made in 1738 by Franz Anton Ketterer in the small village of Schönwald near Triberg, Germany, in the depths of the Black Forest. Ketterer managed to reproduce the cuckoo's call by the clever use of bellows producing two different sounds.

Clocks that were made in winter were sold by the clock peddlars in the summer months during long journeys throughout Europe. The clocks were secured on a frame and carried on the back. They were works of art, sought after luxuries that conquered the hearts of people all over the world.

This ancient craft continued to develop, becoming soon a flourishing industry. The poorly lit "cabinets" on attic floors where watchmakers worked in the past have become light and well-equipped workshops where clock movements and cases are manufactured by up-to-date methods.

Over the following years, the clock industry developed rapidly in the Black Forest. With their inventive genius, cleverness and dexterity, the inhabitants of the region employed the long winter months in making cuckoo clocks with richly handcarved decorations from various woods.

It is known for example that in 1808 in Triberg, and the surrounding villages, 790 of 9013 inhabitants were involved in the clock-making. In 1850 a school for clock-making was founded in Furtwangen, where students learned math and drawing as well as making cases and movements for the clocks.

During the long winter months, the farms were snowed-in and the people had a lot of time to create finely handcrafted cuckoo clocks of many styles with rich and varied carvings.

Clockmaking become widespread in the Black Forest, and folks began to specialize. Some cut gears, others carved the decorations or made the cases, and still others did the painting.

Many cuckoo clocks in the 18th and 19th centuries were painted with elaborate scenes on the front of the case. According to one source, in 1808 in the town of Triberg, 790 of the towns 9,013 residents were involved in clockmaking.

World Famous German Black Forest Model Trains

2005-12-14T16:39:00.000-08:00

In the USA, names like *Marklin and *Faller are household names to American Model Railroaders. German Black Forest Model Railroading layouts depict the landscapes and feel of the area as they are in real life. Here are some layout pics as good as the real thing ....

More Black Forest Germany photos ....
*EuroYank Black Forest Germany Photos