The Ochsenkopf () is the second-highest mountain in the Fichtel Mountains with a height of . On its summit is an observation tower (the ''Asenturm'') and a

transmission tower A transmission tower, also known as an electricity pylon or simply a pylon in British English and as a hydro tower in Canadian English, is a tall structure, usually a steel lattice tower, used to support an overhead power line. In electrical ...

for VHF and TV programmes by

Bayerischer Rundfunk Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR; "Bavarian Broadcasting") is a public-service radio and television broadcaster, based in Munich, capital city of the Free State of Bavaria in Germany. BR is a member organization of the ARD consortium of public broadcas ...

. There are cable cars to the Ochsenkopf from south and north. The valley stations are, in the north, in the village of Bischofsgrün and, in the south, in Fleckl, part of the municipality of Warmensteinach. In winter there is skiing on the Ochsenkopf. In summer a sommerrodelbahn (dry toboggan run) can be used. This is accessible from the northern valley station. In addition since July 2007 there has been a tree-walk (''Kletterwald''), that can be used by individuals or groups. The White Main - the right-hand, northern headstream of the River Main - rises just a short distance to the east of the mountain, above the village of Fichtelberg as does the Fichtelnaab, a headstream of the Naab. The European Watershed also runs over the mountain. The Naab flows south towards the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...

, the Main west to the

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Origin of the name

The name "Ochsenkopf" does not appear in old descriptions of the mountains. The first person to write about the Fichtelgebirge, Matthias von Kemnath (actually Matthias Widmann, b 23 February 1429 in

Kemnath Kemnath () is a small town in the district of Tirschenreuth, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated near the Fichtelgebirge, 24 km southeast of Bayreuth. The town's motto is "das Tor zur Oberpfalz," which translates into English as "The Door t ...

) reported in 1476: ("A mountain, high, wide and well-known, lies in Bavaria, known as the Fichtelberg"). In descriptions of the border in 1499 and 1536 the mountain is called ''Vichtelberg'', thereafter the name was extended to the whole mountain region. It is also mentioned in old documents: around 1317 the Lords of Hirschberg were enfeoffed ''inter alia'' with the ''walt zu dem Vythenberge''. By the 14th century iron ore was being extracted in the ''St. Veith'' Pit on the southern foot of the Ochsenkopf. ''Vyth → Veit → Fichtel''. High-profile local history and name researchers have still not had the last word. The name Ochsenkopf appeared in mining deeds for the first time in 1495, when Lorenz von Ploben from Nürnberg was given the mine on the Fichtelberge "near the Ochsenkopf" as a feoff. That may be the first reference to the head of a steer carved into a rock on the summit, which can still be seen today.

The ''Asenturm''

In 1878 on the foundation of the Fichtelgebirge Section of the German-Austrian Alpine Club (predecessor of the Fichtelgebirge Club) there was already an observation post on the Ochsenkopf - a wooden structure for the ordnance survey. In 1876 a stone survey column had been erected (a Saxon survey post, still there today) and surrounded with a wooden scaffold. Later this scaffold was adapted as an observation tower and raised a little in height, but in 1894 the structure was reported as "very rickety". The Fichtelgebirg Club (''Fichtelgebirgsverein'' or ''FGV'') restored the structure time and again. In 1896, master forester, List, from Bischofsgrün modified the tower and it was raised by 10 metres. On 21 December 1902 the local FGV group in Bischofsgrün applied to the FGV's main office for the construction of a robust, stone tower and transferred a basis of 230 marks as a first estimate. A tower was decided upon, but it was many years before the project could proceed; the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

putting paid to the plans initially. Not until 1922 did the FGV annual general meeting

Villages around the Ochsenkopf

* Bischofsgrün * Fichtelberg * Warmensteinach

The TV tower

The Ochsenkopf Transmitter (german: Sender Ochsenkopf) is a radio and TV tower of reinforced concrete, which was built in 1958 on the summit of the Ochsenkopf. The tower replaced a guyed steel tube TV mast that collapsed in January 1958 as result of icing. The tower, which is not accessible to the public, has a hyperbolic-shaped basement with five floors for technical equipment. Above it, there are platforms for directional antennas. The antennas for FM transmission are on the upper part of the concrete tower, and those for TV transmission on a steel tube mast on the top. It transmits TV programs from ARD, ZDF, and

Ochsenkopf lifts

The Ochsenkopf summit is served by two chairlifts built by the Italian cable car manufacturer, Leitner, from

Sterzing Sterzing (; it, Vipiteno ) is a comune in South Tyrol in northern Italy. It is the main town of the southern Wipptal, and the Eisack River flows through the medieval town. History Origin The town traces its roots to 14 B.C., when Nero Claudius ...

. In winter they serve the skiing area on the mountain.

Ochsenkopf North Chairlift

The Ochsenkopf North Chairlift (german: Seilbahn Ochsenkopf-Nord) is a detachable double chairlift with weather shield (2-CLD/B), that runs from Bischofsgrün in the

Fichtelgebirge The Fichtel MountainsRandlesome, C. et al. (2011). ''Business Cultures in Europe'', 2nd ed., Routledge, Abingdon and New York, p. 52. . (german: Fichtelgebirge, cs, Smrčiny), form a small horseshoe-shaped mountain range in northeastern Bavaria ...

mountains in Germany to the summit of the Ochsenkopf. It was built in 1991. In summer there is a sommerrodelbahn (dry toboggan run) on the mountain which is accessible from the middle station of the chairlift.

Ochsenkopf South Chairlift

The Ochsenkopf South Chairlift (german: Seilbahn Ochsenkopf-Süd) is a detachable double chairlift with weather shield (2-CLD/B), that runs from Warmensteinach in the

mountains in Germany to the summit of the Ochsenkopf. It was built in 1997. In summer cyclists can transport their bicycles to the summit on the lift and bike down the mountain bike single track route below the chairlift.

Notes

Sources

* Christoph Schaller: ''Johann Heinrich Scherbers Umsichten auf dem Ochsenkopf aus dem Jahre 1811'', Heft 2/1989 der Schriftenreihe „Das Fichtelgebirge“, Fichtelgebirgsverein e. V., Wunsiedel. * Dietmar Herrmann: ''Der Ochsenkopf im Fichtelgebirg'', Heft 17/2009 der Schriftenreihe des Fichtelgebirgsvereins, Theresienstr. 2, 95632 Wunsiedel.

External links

Ochsenkopf
{{Authority control Mountains of Bavaria Mountains of the Fichtelgebirge One-thousanders of Germany Bayreuth (district)