PLACES TO SEE IN THE AREA

This area of the Black Forest has some item of interest at almost every turn of the road; however, to give an idea of the variety of things and places to see we will list a few. In your travels to see the places listed we are sure that if you make your trip leisurely you will find no end of interesting places.

Schwarzach Abbey
Just ten minutes from the Wing is a tiny village of Schwarzach with its magnificent Romanesque Abbey which dates back to 714 AD when Agoaldus, a Benedictine monk, arrived from Ireland. A part of the original cloister still remains as does the main portal topped by a statue of St. Benedict and the original cloister mill.
The main church has a statue of Christ The King flanked by Saints Peter and Paul, At right a angles to the main aisle is a transept housing the largest Baroque style alter in Baden province. It was ordered by the third Abbot Barnhardus Beck who also obtained-one of the few existing Silbermann organs for the church.
After the Thirty Years War, Abbot Placidus Rauber had the bones of St. Rufina brought to Schwarzach. They rest encased in a reliquary of glass and ebony; truly a point of interest near at hand.

The Caves of Erpfingen
Near Erpfingen just south Tubingen there are 2 stalactites and stalagmites caves known as the Charles Cave (Karlshohle) and the Bear Cave (Baerenhohle). Charles Cave was discovered 126 years ago and contained about 30 unburied skeletons believed to have been placed there during the plague following the Thirty Years War. Additional corpses were later discovered dating to the time of the Romans and of the Alemani.
The cave is over 500 feet long and contains 7 halls. Hall 2 contains the remains of 2 nomadic tribal cooking places.
In 1949 a second Cave 310 feet long was discovered off Charles Cave and contained skeletons of Bears but no humans. Bears Cave contains the unaltered bears cemetery it the great hall.

Badenweiler
About 20 miles south of Freiburg is the health spa of Badenweiler. The curative hot springs were used by the Romans and are still used today. Centers of interest are the, State Baths, 2 open air swimming pools, the Kurhaus, the Kur-park, the Castle-Park and the ancient Roman Baths which were built during Roman Emperor Verpiani reign in the 1st century after Christ and rediscovered in 1784. The Roman Baths are in the Kur-Park as is the ancient Castle, the old seat of the Zahringer Dukes. Badenweilers Roman Baths ruins count amongst the best preserved antique monuments of Germany.

Sasbachwalden Village
Thirty minutes from the Wing one or the most picturesque villages in the Black Forest - Sasbachwalden. It is spread from the 1200 foot level to the top (2500 feet) of the Horneigrinde. Its half timbered cottages are maintained as builders of new houses are given the stout wooden timbers free to ensure harmony with their 300 year old neighbours.

Sightseeing attractions are the ruins of ancient Brigitten Castle on the southern run of the valley, the Old Black Forest Mill the Gaishollen Waterfalls and the unusual restaurant Hohritt.
It is the home of Black Forest Kirscbwasser as wall as fine wines such as Spatburgunder and Rulander. On the first Sunday in October a local Wine Festival and Harvest Thanksgiving are held and a Wine Queen is selected.

Triberg
About 45 miles southeast of Strasbourg is Triberg, the center of the Black Forest Clock industry. It is surrounded by beautiful forests and many tourists visit its waterfalls (Germany's largest) which once supplied power for the clock making machines.

The clock industry started over 200 years ago with the Cuckoo clock being developed about 1730 near Triberg. About 1881 the first 400 clay clock was produced and the original Black Forest Alarm clocks used little glass bells instead of metal ones. To get a first hand impression of the clock industry visit Triberg.

GERMAN WINES

The months of September and October brings with them the annual wine harvest in the vineyards on the hillsides bordering the Rhine, Mosel, Nake, Neckar rivers. Work starts for the pickers at 5 am, with most of the picking being done by women and children. The men collect the grapes from the pickers and carry them in large wooden containers stripped to their backs to the collecting points between the vineyards, where carts stand waiting with empty barrels.
From here they are transported to the wine presses in the nearby villages. The first grape juice looks like dirty water and has A very sweet taste. This is poured into huge barrels in the cellars and allowed to ferment. A few weeks later you can obtain glasses of this very young wine - called Federweisser - in the local gasthauses. It looks rather cloudy, is very pleasant to drink - but is also very potent.
After the first fermentation the wine is left to settle and it becomes clearer, Then it undergoes its second fermentation so that by late summer of the following year the wine is ready for sale.
In bad years sugar is added to the wine, This makes it more pleasant to drink but causes hangovers. But the best wines are of course the pure ones. One of the most well known is the "Spatlese" which is made from grapes which have been left on the vines until the end of the summer and picked just before the first frost. Another quality wine is the 'Auslese" - made from specially selected grapes. At the top of the list of high grade wines comes the "Trockenbeerauslese", which is also the most expensive. The grapes for this brand are left on the vines until they are shriveled almost to raisins. Only in the very best years can grapes be harvested for these 3 types of wine. The older the wine, the better it tastes and the better the body can stand it.
The wine connoisseur admires first the color of his wine, then smells it carefully, chews a little of it on his tongue and drinks the rest in small sips, In order to give the wine a particularly good taste he eats a piece of dry black bread between glasses.
The end of the wine harvest is celebrated in many areas with a festival. Villages in this district known for their wines are Varnhalt, Neuweier, and Buhlertal, all situated along the "Badische Weinstrasse" (Baden Wine Road) which runs from Baden to Buhl. Take a drive along this road through the hills - you will certainly enjoy it.

 

[ Baden Remembered | Base History |Crossroads]