The All Saints Waterfalls (german: Allerheiligen-Wasserfälle) are located in the

Black Forest The Black Forest (german: Schwarzwald ) is a large forested mountain range in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is t ...

on the territory of the town of

Oppenau Oppenau () is a town located in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It has a population of 4,700 inhabitants. Geography Oppenau is situated in the Rench valley in the Black Forest. The nearest major cities are Offenburg and Freudenstadt. ...

in the German state of

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

at an elevation of about . The

Lierbach Lierbach is a river of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It flows into the Rench in Oppenau. See also *List of rivers of Baden-Württemberg A list of rivers of Baden-Württemberg, Germany: A * Aal * Aalbach * Aalenbach * Ablach * Ach *Acher * Ade ...

stream, also called the Grindenbach, cascades, as a natural

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

, down seven steps, a total drop of 83 metres. Due to the scouring of the rocks under the cataract which have formed basin-like holes known as ''Gumpen'' or kolks), the falls are also called the Büttensteiner Waterfalls ("Tub Stone" waterfalls) or Sieben Bütten ("Seven Tubs").

Location and access

The waterfalls belonged for centuries to All Saints' Abbey, the ruins of which are only a few hundred metres away. Because they lie in a deeply incised and narrow valley, they were inaccessible for a long time. Not until the early 19th century were they discovered with the aid of ladders. In 1840 the forestry authorities built a path that enabled access to the falls via several flights of steps and bridges. Because it receives so many visitors it has had to renovated several times already. The falls are reached along the K 5370 county road, which runs from Oppenau to the

Black Forest High Road Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...

( B 500), and the K 5371, that runs from Ottenhöfen almost to the car park by the abbey. There is also a car park at the bottom of the falls.

Legends

Inspired by their inaccessibility, many legends have arisen about the monastery and waterfalls. These are explained during the course of a scenic and circular "Legend Trail", the route of which also passes the waterfalls.

Gallery

File:Wasserfall-Allerheiligen.jpg, All Saints Waterfall File:allerheiligen_wasserfaelle_01.jpg, The waterfalls on 15 September 2008 File:allerheiligen_wasserfaelle_02.jpg, The waterfalls on 15 September 2008

External links

{{commons category, Allerheiligen-Wasserfälle
Website of the town of Oppenau about the abbey and waterfalls
(under "Tourismus/Sehenswertes") Waterfalls of Germany Geography of the Black Forest Ortenaukreis WAll Saints Waterfalls