The Schliffkopf is a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

in the

Northern Black Forest The Northern Black Forest (german: Nordschwarzwald) refers to the northern third of the Black Forest in Germany or, less commonly today, to the northern half of this mountain region. Geography The Northern Black Forest is bounded in the north b ...

between

Baiersbronn Baiersbronn is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality and a village in the district of Freudenstadt (district), Freudenstadt in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated in the Black Forest on the Murg (Northern Black Forest), Mu ...

, Ottenhöfen and

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. ...

. It is . The Schliffkopf lies on 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 ...

in the

National Park A national park is a nature park, natural park in use for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state dec ...

and is the site of an eponymous four-star "wellness" hotel. Various

long-distance path A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, horse riding or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents excep ...

s, including the West Way, run over the Schliffkopf. At the end of June 2003 a

nature trail An educational trail (or sometimes educational path), nature trail or nature walk is a specially developed hiking trail or footpath that runs through the countryside, along which there are marked stations or stops next to points of natural, techno ...

, the Lothar Path (''Lotharpfad''), was opened at the Schliffkopf on the topic of storm damage. Along an 800-metre-long educational and experience trail, visitors can see how this ten-hectare area, heavily damaged by

Hurricane Lothar A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

in 1999, has gradually recovered and been recolonized. The Lothar Path runs along footbridges, ladders and steps and shows how the forces of nature act, how nature deals with destruction in such an area and what naturally regrows. The Schliffkopf is a source region for the

Acher The Acher is a 53.6-kilometre-long river and right-hand tributary of the Rhine in the county of Ortenau, in the south German state of Baden-Württemberg. It flows in an northwesterly direction from the Black Forest to the Rhine, between the two ...

and the Murg.

Nature reserves

A 520.1-hectare part of the

raised bog Raised bogs, also called ombrotrophic bogs, are acidic, wet habitats that are poor in mineral salts and are home to flora and fauna that can cope with such extreme conditions. Raised bogs, unlike fens, are exclusively fed by precipitation ( ombro ...

-like summit region has been designated as a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

since 1938. In 1986, on the territory of the district of

Freudenstadt Freudenstadt ( Swabian: ''Fraidestadt'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is capital of the district Freudenstadt. The closest population centres are Offenburg to the west (approx. 36 km away) and Tübingen to the eas ...

, a further 876.2 ha was granted reserve status. This is intended to protect the typical landscape of the Black Forest ''

grinden A ''grinde'' (plural: ''grinden'') is an almost treeless area of wet heathland found on the rounded bunter sandstone ridges of the Northern Black Forest in Germany. The ''grinden'' reached their greatest extent in the early 19th century when they r ...

'' with their extensive woods, stands of

mountain pine ''Pinus mugo'', known as bog pine, creeping pine, dwarf mountain pine, mugo pine, mountain pine, scrub mountain pine, or Swiss mountain pine, is a species of conifer, native to high elevation habitats from southwestern to Central Europe and Sou ...

and the tarn of

Buhlbachsee The Buhlbachsee is a tarn (lake) in the northern Black Forest on the southwestern edge of the parish of Baiersbronn in the county of Freudenstadt in Baden-Württemberg. Since 1 January 2014 it has been part of the Black Forest National Park. The t ...

. Parts of the forest are also designated as ''

Schonwald A ''Schonwald'' is the term used in the German state of Baden-Württemberg for a protected woodland area, in which economic usage of the forest is permitted, but under certain restrictions. The term is not used in other German-speaking regions or ...

''. The Schliffkopf is also part of the 2,897-hectare

Special Area of Conservation A Special Area of Conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

known as the ''

Wilder See-Hornisgrinde Wilder may refer to: People * Wilder (name), including a list of people with the name Places Austria * Kaisergebirge, also called Wilder Kaiser, a ski area in Austria United States * Wilder, California * Wilder, Idaho * Wilder, Kansas * Wilde ...

''. In addition, the 36,045-hectare bird reserve of ''Nordschwarzwald'' includes the Schliffkopf and thus covers the SAC and nature reserves too.

External links

Naturschutzgebiet Schliffkopf

References

{{Authority control Mountains and hills of Baden-Württemberg Mountains and hills of the Black Forest One-thousanders of Germany