The Ochsenkopf () is the second-highest mountain in the

Fichtel Mountains 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 ...

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 gri ...

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 station The valley station is the lower terminal of an aerial lift, cable car, gondola lift, chairlift, rack railway or ski lift. The valley station is the counterpart of a top station. Cable cars may be boarded at both stations. The valley station is al ...

s are, in the north, in the village of

Bischofsgrün Bischofsgrün is a municipality in the district of Bayreuth in Bavaria in Germany. Bischofsgrün is situated within the Fichtelgebirge mountain range between the range's two largest mountains; Schneeberg (1051 m) and the Ochsenkopf (1024 m). T ...

and, in the south, in Fleckl, part of the municipality of

Warmensteinach Warmensteinach is a municipality in the district of Bayreuth in Bavaria in Germany. From here there is a chairlift, the Ochsenkopf South Chairlift, to the summit of the Ochsenkopf, the second highest mountain in the Fichtelgebirge The Fichtel ...

. In winter there is skiing on the Ochsenkopf. In summer a

sommerrodelbahn A summer toboggan is an amusement or recreational ride which uses a bobsled-like sled or cart to run down a track usually built on the side of a hill. There are two main types: an Alpine coaster or mountain coaster is a type of roller coaster ...

(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 White Main (german: Weißer Main or ''Weißmain'', not to be confused with the Weismain), is the larger and shorter of the two headstreams of the river Main. It rises in the Fichtelgebirge and merges near Steinenhausen, southwest of Kulmbach, ...

- the right-hand, northern headstream of the

River Main The Main () is the longest tributary of the Rhine. It rises as the White Main in the Fichtel Mountains of northeastern Bavaria and flows west through central Germany for to meet the Rhine below Rüsselsheim, Hesse. The cities of Mainz and Wiesb ...

- rises just a short distance to the east of the mountain, above the village of

Fichtelberg The Fichtelberg () is a mountain with two main peaks in the middle of the Ore Mountains in the east German state of Saxony, near the Czech border. At above sea level, the Fichtelberg is the highest mountain in Saxony, the second highest in the ...

as does the

Fichtelnaab The Fichtelnaab is a river in Upper Franconia and the Upper Palatinate, Bavaria, Germany. It rises in the Fichtelgebirge and flows into the Waldnaab near Windischeschenbach. Course The source of the ''Fichtelnaab'' is located on the southeaste ...

, a headstream of the

Naab __NOTOC__ The Naab (Czech: ''Nába'') is a river in Bavaria, Germany, and is a left tributary of the Danube. Including its main source river Waldnaab, it is long. Its average discharge at the mouth is . The Naab is formed by the confluence of t ...

. 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 , pa ...

, the Main west to the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

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 to ...

) 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 A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form o ...

. 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 The Fichtelgebirge Club (german: Fichtelgebirgsverein or ''FGV'') is a large walking club and local heritage society in Bavaria and recognised conservation group with 20,000 members in 55 local groups. As the name says, its main sphere of activit ...

) 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

The TV tower

The Ochsenkopf Transmitter (german: Sender Ochsenkopf) is a radio and TV tower of

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete (RC), also called reinforced cement concrete (RCC) and ferroconcrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having hig ...

, 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 ZDF (, short for Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ; "Second German Television") is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. It is run as an independent nonprofit institution, which was founded by all fe ...

, 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

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

(dry toboggan run) on the mountain which is accessible from the middle station of the

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs. They ...

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

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)