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The Lützelsoon (also called the Kleiner Soon) is a part of the
Hunsrück The Hunsrück () is a long, triangular, pronounced upland in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the valleys of the Moselle-Saar (north-to-west), the Nahe (south), and the Rhine (east). It is continued by the Taunus mountains, past ...
hills, , in the county of
Bad Kreuznach Bad Kreuznach () is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a spa town, most well known for its medieval bridge dating from around 1300, the Alte Nahebrücke, which is one of the few remaining bridges in the ...
, in the state of
Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...
.


Location

The Lützelsoon is a hill ridge southwest of the
Soonwald The Soonwald is a forested, low mountain region, up to , which forms part of the Hunsrück mountains in the German Central Uplands. It lies within the counties of Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis and Bad Kreuznach in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. Geo ...
range and north of Hennweiler between the Kellenbach valley (the lower course of the Simmerbach) to the east and northeast and the
Hahnenbach Hahnenbach is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, who ...
valley to the west and southwest. Other
plateaux In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...
of the Hunsrück border to the north and south. On its
ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...
line are several large
quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica ( silicon dioxide). The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical ...
formations like the ''Teufelsfels'', the ''Blickensteine'' and the ''Katzensteine''.


Tourism

The Lützelsoon, which is covered by natural woodland and criss-crossed by paths, is not a particularly well known tourist area, yet offers trails especially suitable for hikers and cyclists, as well as those interested in castles, conservation or geology. Popular destinations are the viewing points of Blickenstein, Katzenstein and the Teufelsfels with its observation tower. The
slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
so typical of the rooftops and decorations of houses in the region is responsible for the interesting
quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tec ...
rocks that "grew out of" the soft slate on the crest of the Soonwald over thousands of years. In the
visitor mine A mine, i.e. an industrial facility for the underground extraction of mineral commodities In economics, a commodity is an economic good, usually a resource, that has full or substantial fungibility: that is, the market treats instances of t ...
of Herrenberg near Bundenbach guided tours are conducted through the pit. Ancient fossils may be seen at the fossil museum in Wartenstein Castle. There are several castles and palaces in the vicinity of the Lützelsoon that are worth visiting: the ruins of the Schmidtburg, Wartenstein Castle, the
Kyrburg Kirn is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. It is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land. Kirn is a middle centre serving an area on the Nahe and in the Hunsrück. Geography Location Kirn lies in a lan ...
in Kirn, Dhaun Castle,
Gemünden Castle Gemünden may refer to several places in Germany: * Gemünden am Main, a town in Bavaria *Gemünden (Wohra), a town in Hesse *Gemünden (Felda), a municipality in Hesse *Gemünden, Rhein-Hunsrück, a municipality in Rhineland-Palatinate *Gemün ...
and the Celtic hillfort of Altburg. The Soonwaldsteig trail runs through the Lützelsoon from west to east. At right angles to it is the Nahe–Moselle Celtic Way. The 30-kilometre-long Lützelsoon Cycleway runs through the western part of the range from Kirchberg to
Kirn Kirn is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. It is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land. Kirn is a middle centre serving an area on the Nahe and in the Hunsrück. Geography Location Kirn lies in a lands ...
. Several routes that are part of the Hunsrück Slate and Castle Road (''Hunsrück Schiefer- und Burgenstraße'') run around the Lützelsoon.


Teufelsfels

The Teufelsfels ("Devil Rock", 569.0 m), a
natural monument A natural monument is a natural or natural/cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities or cultural significance. Under World Commission on Protected Areas guidelines, na ...
, on the crest of the Lützelsoon, is the largest and most interesting of the four large quartzite
butte __NOTOC__ In geomorphology, a butte () is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and table (landform), tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from a F ...
s. It is situated between the villages of Schneppenbach,
Bruschied Bruschied is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, whose ...
and
Hennweiler Hennweiler is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, who ...
. Until the 1960s the rock could still be climbed using a fixed iron ladder. As a result of the weathering of the rock this was no longer possible from 1975, and the parish of Hennweiler contemplated the construction of an observation tower. The tower was finally built in 1984/85 on the initiative of the village chair, Heinrich Heimfahrt. As a result, the tower is also known locally as ''Langer Heinrich'' ("Long Henry"). The tower offers a unique 360 degree view over the Hunsrück, the thickly wooded heights of the
Idar Forest The Idar Forest (German: ''Idarwald'', Celtic: ''"id ar"'' - hill forest above the land) is part of the Hunsrück low mountain range in the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Geography The Idar Forest lies in the districts ...
, the
Schwarzwälder Hochwald The Schwarzwälder Hochwald (; literally 'Black Forest High Forest'), not to be confused with the High Black Forest, is the high south-western part of the Hunsrück in the German states of Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate. SWRDer Schwarzwälder Ho ...
and the
Soonwald The Soonwald is a forested, low mountain region, up to , which forms part of the Hunsrück mountains in the German Central Uplands. It lies within the counties of Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis and Bad Kreuznach in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. Geo ...
as far as the
Donnersberg The Donnersberg ("thunder mountain") is the highest peak of the Palatinate (german: Pfalz) region of Germany. The mountain lies between the towns of Rockenhausen and Kirchheimbolanden, in the Donnersbergkreis district, which is named after the ...
in North Palatinate.


Hills

The highest summit in the Lützelsoon is the Womrather Höhe at 599.1 m. The following is a list of hills, high points and rock formations – sorted by elevation in
metre The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its p ...
s (m) above sea level (NN): * Womrather Höhe (599.1 m), between Schneppenbach and
Königsau Königsau is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, whose ...
, with the: ** Teufelsfels (569.0 m), rocks (
natural monument A natural monument is a natural or natural/cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities or cultural significance. Under World Commission on Protected Areas guidelines, na ...
, NM), southwest of the Womrather Höhe; with observation tower ** ''Blickenstein'' (near ca. 575 m), rocks (NM), east of the Womrather Höhe ** ''Katzenstein'' (near the 555.2 metre
spot height A spot height is an exact point on a map with an elevation recorded beside it that represents its height above a given datum.Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, 1984, p. 506. . In the UK this is the Ord ...
), rocks (NM), northeast of the Womrather Höhe * ''Kochemeberg'' (502.3 m), near
Bruschied Bruschied is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, whose ...
, with: ** ''Wehlenstein'', rocks (NM), at the same place


Villages

In and around the Lützelsoon lies several small, picturesque slate villages: *
Schlierschied Schlierschied is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of ...
– on the northern perimeter * Woppenroth – on the northwestern perimeter * Schneppenbach und
Bruschied Bruschied is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, whose ...
– on the western edge * Kellenbach und
Königsau Königsau is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, whose ...
– in the east *
Hennweiler Hennweiler is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, who ...
und
Hahnenbach Hahnenbach is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, who ...
– on the southwestern edge *
Heinzenberg Heinzenberg is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land, wh ...
– on the southeastern edge *
Oberhausen Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European ...
– on the southern edge Other interesting villages in the vicinity are: *
Kirn Kirn is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. It is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land. Kirn is a middle centre serving an area on the Nahe and in the Hunsrück. Geography Location Kirn lies in a lands ...
(old Lederstadt) *
Idar-Oberstein Idar-Oberstein () is a town in the Birkenfeld district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. As a ''Große kreisangehörige Stadt'' (large city belonging to a district), it assumes some of the responsibilities that for smaller municipalities in ...
(known as the gem town) * Kirchberg


References


Literature

* Uwe Anhäuser: ''Sagenhafter Hunsrück''; Alf/Mosel: Rhein-Mosel-Verlag, 1995; * Uwe Anhäuser: ''Schinderhannes und seine Bande''; Alf/Mosel: Rhein-Mosel-Verlag, 2003;


External links


Private website about the Lützelsoon


{{DEFAULTSORT:Lutzelsoon Hill ranges of Germany Natural regions of the Hunsrück Central Uplands Landscapes of Rhineland-Palatinate Forests and woodlands of Rhineland-Palatinate Bad Kreuznach (district)