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Blautopf, Blaubeuren – A Location For Romantic Legends And Fairy Tales

by Peter Engelmann, August 10. 2022

Read in German

Have you ever been looking for a motive for presenting the German romanticism in pure form? The Blautopf lake near Blaubeuren in the Swabian Alb is such a motive.

The Blautopf Lake is the second largest karst spring in Germany and serves as the source of the river blue.

Visitors see a magical blue and green water, often changing its color. It is like a giant eye or portal to another world.

What else do we need for a romantic fairy-tale setting? Right. A hammer-smith and a medieval town. It’s all there. Across the blue lake of the Blautopf is a hammer-smith with a cafe and an information centre for tourists. Nearby is the city of Blaubeuren with a famous abbey. There are plenty of half-timbered houses.

Last but not least, ruins of castles sit on the top of hills above the valley.

The Blautopf and Blaubeuren are in the middle of a broad valley not far from Ulm, the biggest city in the neighbourhood. It is a popular tourist destination.

Real fairy tale Europe: The Hammer-Smith

Romantic Imagination

No wonder Blautopf lake has been an inspiration for many folk tales and romantic stories. Nix regularly stole the sounding line when researchers tried to make measurements.

The karst spring became prominent in the 19th century. This was the era of romanticism with writers as E.T.A. Hoffman and painters as Caspar David Friedrich.

Eduard Mörike, a famous German novelist and poet, incorporated many tales from the region in the romantic novella “Das Stuttgarter Hutzelmännlein”. It is a story about a journeyman travelling from Stuttgart to Blaubeuren. One folk legend is about “Die Schöne Lau”, a mermaid, and her husband, a male water-nix. She couldn’t laugh, and he punished her by confining her to the blue lake. In the end, the landlady of the Nonnenhof Inn came to her help.

Modern scientific discoveries in the region are often even more fantastic than the rich imagination of romantic writers.

One Of Germany’s Most Impressive Water-Cave Systems

Officially, the spring basin is 22m deep, but this is not the end. Blautopf is the end of an incredible cave system. Divers use the Blautopf lake as an entry point for expeditions into the epic cave system “Blauhöhle”. It’s indeed a portal to the other world.

Cave-diving is a dangerous sport, and there was a tragic event here in 2003. There is a society, the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Blautopf, which explores the cave system. The water cave was discovered in 1960-62. Later, researcher and diver Jochen Hasenmayer made incredible discoveries. Most parts of the cave are under water but there are huge domes, which are dry, underwater lakes and huge stalactites. Speleologists are fascinated by this secret subterran world which still holds many secrets. Til today, this is a dangerous territory and there is no access for the public. However there are amazing documentaries about expeditions into the cave system as From The Blue, Into The Dark, which are highly recommended.

Reflections on the still water surface, underwater plants, light and shadow. A mysterious place.

Practical Guidance

The best time for photography and videography is in the morning hours during summer. This is a motive which looks better when the sun is shining. The impressive blue color is a result of the nanoscale limestone particles. They are densely distributed in the lake. The particles cause a raylight scattering effect.

You might want to consider also autumn for a visit. The trees are mostly deciduous trees. That will make a wonderful color palette with the magic blue Blautopf lake on the one side and the red and yellow colors of the leaves.

The Blautopf is easy accessible. It is a 25 minute walk from the train station in Blaubeuren. Blaubeuren is approximately 16 km from Ulm. The train ride is around 12 minutes from Ulm. Trains come frequently. Stuttgart is approx 80 from Blaubeuren. There is a huge parking space close to the Blautopf.

A flaltly leads around the Blautopf lake. From there there are many different perspectives of the blue water and the hammer-smith.

Having surrounded the Blautopf the trail leads straight into the medieval town Blaubeuren.

Close to the Blautopf: The **Blaubeuren Abbey**. Inside there is museum and the historical bath house of the monks. If there is still time the **URMU**, the Urgeschichtliche Museum, is another highlight in this amazing town. Traces of human presence in the Swabian Alb go back to 40 000 B.C. and in the museum there are some rare relicts.

August 10, 2022August 12, 2022 by Waldmeister Categories: natural wonders, Summer, Travel Tip, UncategorizedTags: Baden-Württemberg, Blaubeuren, Blautopf, Blautopf lake, cave, karst-spring, Swabian Alb, water-cave

Majestic Mountains And An Enchanted Forest – The Schwarzwasser Valley, Austria

by Peter Engelmann, July 28. 2022

The famous Kleinwalsertal is a popular tourist destination in winter and summer. It belongs to the province of Vorarlberg. The Kleinwalsertal belongs to Austria, but you get only there from Germany. It is an Austrian enclave. The name Walser refers to history: First Settlement came from the South, from Switzerland. The valley with many scenic places begins near Oberstdorf. The main villages in the high mountain area are Mittelberg, Hirscheeg and Riezlern. At the end of the head of the valley is Baad. From the Kleinwalsertal, many trails lead into beautiful and spectacular high valleys with mountain pastures. One of them is the Schwarzwasser Valley. This fantastic valley offers many excellent motives for photographers and videographers. It’s a must-see for anybody interested in nature due to its outstanding geological formations and rich flora. There is a peat bog on the way to the Melköde Alm.

Wilderness Around The Ifen

A good starting point for a trip into the Scharzwasser Valley is the parking spot near the Ifen ropeway and the Auenhütte. A mountain road connects the bottom station of the Ifenbahn, Hirschegg and Riezlern. There is an excellent public transportation system in Kleinwalsertal. Buses come often, and there is a bus connection to Oberstdorf in Germany. A good alternative if you don’t want to use the car. The trail starts at the end of the parking space on the left side of the station. It leads to a lake. That lake is a reservoir for the snow-making facilities in winter. This lake shimmers in magical green and blue colours.

Near the trail between the lake and the mountain pasture Melköde (where you can eat and drink during the summer) lies a mountain forest. It’s an impressive pristine mountain forest on the left side of the trail. In some places, massive rocks look like ancient relics. Even though it is very comfortable to walk there – and of course, there are often many hikers here – it is a feeling of entering the wilderness.

The intimidating Hoher Ifen is towering above the valley. This mountain is another great sight and a very interesting geological phenomenon. The mountain is more than 2200 metres high. The rough table-mountain form is quite unusual for the alps. It is a spectacular sight with its wild and unruly rock face. It is easy to imagine that our ancestors might have seen it as a holy mountain or a ritual place. It is an option to go there, when there is not a blue sky but some clouds and mist. When shrouds of mist climb up the mountains or clouds play around, the wild nature of the Ifen region comes even more to light.

The Pastures

The trail slowly ascends. If you are interested in taking pictures of the mountain-forest, there are many motives along the trail. At one point, a small path to the left leads to a sort of column with an icon. It’s worth taking a minute and getting there. The column is on a little hill in the mountain overlooking a wild area with some further great sighs.

Some minutes later, back on the main hike the landscape opens up. If you come here on a day when the last rain clouds disappear and there is an interplay of sunlight and clouds this is like a scene from “The Lord Of The Rings”. The waterfall behind the pasture adds to the impression. These mountain pastures are unique since they belong partly to the peat bog. Cultivation and farming goes on on here for a very long time. The Melköde mountain farm goes back to 1566. It has a long history, and there were also catastrophic events. Avalanches destroyed buildings a couple of times. On one occasion, 20 people died. The wilderness is always close, and one must respect nature all the time.

Alpine Meadow Near Melköde, Schwarzwasser Valley, Kleinwalsertal

The pastures are on a plateau within the Schwarzwasser Valley at an altitude of 1350 metres above sea level. That allows special light conditions and intense colours. The meadows are great motives.

Hiking towards the Schwarzwasserhütte

After a stop at the Melköde farming house and inn, the trail enters a more steep terrain. It’s not difficult to go further, but it is now a different type of trail and demands some endurance. The trail is in excellent shape, and one can only praise the fantastic work of the people caring for this great path into the mountains. But keep in mind it’s alpine terrain and not any longer a driveway. There are some sections where attention is necessary. When it is raining, this trail is slippery.

The quality of this valley is also because of the climate and weather conditions. The temperature is moderate in summer. There is a lot of rain in the summer and snow in the winter. These are good conditions for unique vegetation with a variety of plants. It’s still a reservoir of many protected plants.

The trail opens up again, and the rustically Schwarzwasserhütte comes into sight. That is a great place to take more pictures with fantastic views. On the left side, there are impressive grass mountains and on the other side, there is again the Ifen plateau. The Schwarzwasserhütte goes back to 1914. The German Alpenverein Sektion Schwaben runs this cosy alpine lodge. The Schwarzwasserhütte is a starting point for hikes toward the mountain peaks. Bear in mind that this is high alpine terrain and for trips to the Hoher Ifen sure-footedness is a must. But even a few metres from the alpine lodge, there are great opportunities to take pictures or videos. The alpine lodge is open in winter, too. There is accommodation too and a nice and competent team. Reservations are necessary.

But even if it is only a short stay there is enough time to take in that heavenly scenery. This is both a landscape of eternal beauty and the roughness of the wilderness.

The Kleinwalsertal has a lot to offer. More spectacular destinations are the Breitenbachklamm on the German side and the Gottesackerplateau. This plateau, a geological formation is on the other side of the Hoher Ifen. Note: There is also a hike called “Schwarzwassertal” which leads down from the Auenhütte to Mittelberg in some guides. This is interesting too and is another gorge.

July 28, 2022July 31, 2022 by Waldmeister Categories: natural wonders, Photography Tips And Tricks, Summer, Travel Tip, UncategorizedTags: Austria, forest, Hiking, Hoher Ifen, Kleinwalsertal, landscape photography, Melköde, oberstdorf, Schwarzwasserhütte, Schwarzwassertal, Vorarlberg

An Alpine Wilderness Easy Accessible For Landscape Photography – Oy Valley

by Peter Engelmann, April 30, 2022

The Oy valley or Oytal is a high alpine valley at the Southern tip of Germany. It is one of the most popular destinations among tourists and hikers staying in Oberstdorf. Trips into the Oytal start straight near the valley station of the Nebelhornbahn ropeway. From here a couple of trails lead towards the Oy valley. One trail leads to the pitoresque Trettach valley first (where the Oy valley begins at a fork) and to a first grand scenic view with the tops of the Allgäuer Alpen in the background. Another trail leads high up over the lower part of the valley and offers many vistas. The Oy valley is top destination also for filmmakers and photographers throughout the year.

What’s special here is that nobody has to leave the road or very comfortable trails to get to places for fantastic motives for video and photo. There is a road (closed for normal traffic) leading to the Oytalhaus, a traditional mountain inn with excellent food and more spectacular views. You reach this lovely mountain inn after 1 1/2 hours walk.

The trails from the Nebelhornbahn ropeway til the Oytalhaus are no problem for normal walkers and easy accessible. There are no steep climbs. It’s more a continuous ascend. The lower trail beginning at the bridge over the Trettach is called Dr. Hohenadl Weg. It leads through an impressing mountain forest.

After a few bends the high and intimidating high peaks of huge mountains show up. Then the trail reaches an alley with trees which is another unique feature in the Oy valley. During the season a lot of tourists use this road.

The valley broadens and on the left side the well-known Seebachwand comes into view. It is a huge intimidating rock-face. Here are some water falls and indeed there is one of the highest waterfalls in Europe here right across the Oytal Haus Mountain inn. If you want to takes pictures of the falls the best time is in spring when a lot of water comes down. The water falls in the lower part of the valley are in some distance. It’s good to have a long focal length. Both in spring and autumn you see wonderful colors in this unique mountain wilderness.

The trail between the Oytalhaus mountain inn and some alpine farms leads to more and more impressive sights of the peaks and their unique shapes. Spring is again a good time as long as the mountain tops are white with snow from the last winter. To the left and to the right there are alpine meadows with rare alpine plants. Please be careful, because this a nature reserve and help to protect animals and these rare plants. There is really plenty to shoot for video and photography straight from the trail.

If you want to take pictures and need a quiet atmosphere during the week, for or after the main holiday seasons or on a day with cloudy weather conditions is a good time. During afternoon in summer tourists can rent special scooters for a fast journey back. And there can be a lot of people out there on weekends. There are also plenty of mountain bikers often. Nevertheless there is enough room for anybody to enjoy the fantastic nature.

The trail from the Trettach valley bridge and the Oytal Haus is only part of a much bigger network of trails which lead high up into the mountains. It is for some time still very comfortable (til the next alpine farm) but its lengthy and in the higher part there is a steep ascent. There are more alpine farms up there which offer food and drinks during the summer time. Another huge waterfall is further down the trail (Stuibenfall), which is closer to the trail then the first ones and it looks fantastic, but this is another one and a half hour walk from the Oytalhaus.

In some areas there is still snow in April

A typical thing for these regions are grassy mountains. They should never be underestimated by climbers because they can be very challenging. The region is due to its different type of mountains and the materials they are made of highly interesting for people who are into geology. You see outstanding forms of rock, mountains and different earth ages.

Good preparation is key as always in alpine terrain. The Oy valley is easy accessible but its good to know about distances (walking times) and what are further options. During summer there is also an exhausting round trip possible with a descend into another mountain valley. However, these might be more for people with a good condition. Weather conditions could change quickly, too.

Sometimes, in spring, water runs in small creeks over the trail in the upper parts of the valley. There might be also snow even in late spring some years in shadowy parts of the valley (proper shoes for hiking strongly recommended). In summer the upper parts are exposed to the sun.

For the high part with mountain peaks and more attractions like the Eissee high above the valley please keep in mind that there are completely different conditions as in the bottom of the valley with comfortable roads and trails. It’s difficult rocky and alpine terrain. It requires experience with hiking in the mountains and it’s a fascinating but also potentially dangerous wilderness region. Tourist offices in Oberstdorf and other towns and villages in the Allgäu-Region can certainly help with good advice. They can tell you also if trails are open or closed or if moutain huts are open. The Oytal trails are accessible by train and by car. There is a huge parking slot near the Nebelhornbahn ropeway station. But it’s great to use the train and the buses, which run frequently.

June 19, 2022August 3, 2022 by Waldmeister Categories: natural wonders, Spring, Summer, Travel Tip, UncategorizedTags: Allgäu, oberstdorf, oy valley, oytal, panoramic viewpoint, Wandertour

Extreme Weather In Southern Germany June 2021

Peter Engelmann, July 3, 2021

2021: A cold spring with temperatures in May below average. Luckily there was lot of rain in parts of Germany after a drought since 2018 in some areas which damaged trees and raised serious concerns for example about the future of the water balance and water supply. In June a heat wave followed. However unlike in previous years there were no long lasting high pressure systems. The weather situation wasn’t so far stable for a long time. The heat wave ended with some extreme weather events. And again, we had situations for example in South-West-Germany or in Landshut, lower Bavaria, which were unprecedented. There are a lot of discussions now going on if this is climate-change related or if it is another rare weather pattern.

Things began to change in Bavaria June 20, 2021. The days before had been mostly dry except first thunderstorms in the Southwest and in the Alps. On June 20 there were some rumble and not so intense lightning in the region west of lake Ammersee. As usual there are huge local differences: There were soon stronger thunderstorm whereas a few kilometres apart from that place nothing or little happened. That’s very usual and always challenges weather forecasters.

Thunderstorm in the early evening hours of June 20:

Short lived thunderstorm cell June 20, 2021

The next days there was a much different weather situation: In the late afternoon or evening real strong thunderstorms occurred. Rotating supercell storms were also reported in the Southern Germany. Even more extreme weather happened in France where an air mass boundary created havoc. In France huge clusters of thunderstorms formed repeatedly and moved to Belgium and North-West Germany.

Strong thunderstorm on June 24, 6.45 p.m. near Diessen (Lake Ammersee, Upper Bavaria)

The extreme weather with strong thunderstorms, flash-floods, even extreme hail with enormous hailstones and masses of hail lasted for a couple of days. The reason: The air mass boundary moved only slowly in Europe. It worked like a machine charging up the atmosphere and creating new thunderstorms. A time-lapse video from June 21, 2021 late afternoon gives you some idea how quickly the storms formed:

It was interesting that there were very different types of thunderstorms. The location southwest of the Ammersee experience short-lived thunderstorms, a thunderstorm which arrived very quickly as the next day there was slow movement and plenty of time to take pictures. In the night there was also one of the “stroboscope”-like thunderstorms, where you hear not much loud thunder but you see an incredible light show with high rates of flashes. There were both thunderstorms without wind and thunderstorms with very strong wind.

The thunderstorm on June 24 created some great lightning:

The storm below occurred June 28, 2021 and brought intense lightning. However it was completely different as the “strobe-storm” the night before before. The lightning was also better visible. After one of the storms there was also a thick mist around sunset. Later the mist vanished and another thunderstorm with strong lightning occurred. The stronger storms came mostly from the Alps.

Thunderstorm in the evening of June 28, 10.00 p.m:

Flash Floods and Super Cell Storms

Finally there was an exchange of air mass. The hot humid air was replaced by colder air. June 29 was the climax of the series of thunderstorms in Germany: In Bavaria, a super-cell coming from Baden-Württemberg, intensified and brought an incredibly flash flood in Landshut Lower Bavaria. The days before a deadly tornado happened in the Czech republic. The video shows the aftermath of the big storm on June 29 which was accompanied by very strong winds.

Here is also an interesting thing for photographers and videographers: Usually most people are interested to catch a storm coming to them or before it happens. But there is a lot of possibilities to get interesting moods and pictures when the storm passed. The video belows shows what was going on in the atmosphere after this huge thunderstorm on June 29.

July 3, 2021January 16, 2023 by Waldmeister Categories: Climate Change, Severe Weather, Stormchasing, Summer, Thunderstorm, Uncategorized, Wind, WindstormTags: flash flood, super cell, Thunderstorm