April 2015

Schwarzwald – Black Forest – is so far the most romantic place that we had a chance to visit in Germany. Probably because of the name itself, Black Forest evokes something so nostalgic, dark and mysterious, that no other “just another forest” can do. The famous German word Waldeneinsamkeit, which means “a feeling of being alone in the forest”, was probably created to honour Schwarzwald.

So, what is it? Black Forest is a forested mountain range in the South-West of Germany, famous for the thermal sources and picturesque summer resorts. It includes couple of large cities, Freiburg among others, but the main attraction remains obviously nature. We’d like to suggest you a one or two-day road trip itinerary we tried and loved ourselves, even if it the Black Forest deserves much more.

We set off from our usual base – Offenburg and drove till Bad Peterstal-Griesbach, where we parked and then took one of the walking trails in the depths of the forest. Fresh air, the smell of the trees, amazing shades of green. It’s a pure aesthetic pleasure reminding of the creepiest German fairy-tales.

We had a strict lunch consisting of Sauerkraut and Sausage (what else could we have ordered?!) in a Guesthouse Berggasthaus Braunbergstüble.

Driving to the summits of the Schwarzwald mountains to admire an abrupt change of scenery from the fluffy trees to the empty and windy zones.

Mummelsee is a relatively large, but incredibly beautiful lake surrounded by the same thick forest. And of course one can find a shop with the most authentic Black Forest souvenirs and namely – Cuckoo Clocks with a range of prices for any budget and Berry Liquors. Have a look at the page Cuckoo Forest to find out more about the Cuckoo Clocks which are still hand-made in the Black Forest area!

The next step was driving through the gorgeous sunset back to Offenburg passing by the Gaishölle Wasserfälle and saying hello to these Scottish cows!

Black Forest Tourism is the official site of Schwarzwald, where you can get any information and help with your planning.

Black Forest National Park provides the information about the park and its nature.

Les Others the article is in French, but the photos are really inspiring.