Nature Parks in Bavaria: 12 Tips

The granite ridge of the Steinwald forest, measuring 18 times 20 kilometres, is the second smallest nature park in Bavaria after the Ammergau Alps. It stretches southwards from Marktredwitz between the Fichtel Mountains and the Oberpfälzer Wald. The Platte is the highest point. At 946 m it does not quite meet the thousand-metre mark, but the 33 m high Oberpfalzturm makes a popular destination with all-round views. Not far from there are the ruins of Weißenstein Castle, namesake of the Steinwald, or “forest of stones”.

Typical of the Steinwald are fantastically shaped granite boulders and rocks with no less fantastic names such as Katzentrögel, Zipfeltannenfelsen or Saubadfelsen. Climbing is permitted on some formations, such as the Vogelfelsen and Räuberfelsen. The forest landscape is characterised by spruce trees, interspersed with pine, beech, oak and fir. Two conservation areas: Föhrenbühl with its rare ferns and Teichelberg with ancient beech, lime and cherry, as well as more than two hundred species of moth plus lynx and wild cat. Gemstone deposits including agate and jasper, and ores that were mined here in the Middle Ages. Also many springs, with the famous King Otto Spring near Wiesau being particularly rich in iron.

Beautiful walking terrain, with long-distance walking trails such as the Burgenweg and the Goldsteig running through the park. From the hikers’ car park in the north of Pfaben, a nature trail goes past various natural highlights. Culinary specialities of the region: Bottom-fermented “Zoigl” beer from small community breweries and carp from the local fish farms.
naturpark-steinwald.de (only in German)

The Rhön is a low mountain range, below 1,000 m, that runs through parts of Bavaria, Hesse and Thuringia. The Bavarian Rhön Nature Park lies in the districts of Bad Kissingen and Rhön-Grabfeld in the extreme north of Bavaria. Mountains, plateaus and summits dominate the Rhön landscape.

Distant views over meadows, forests and hills are typical of the region, especially in the High Rhön. The landscape is characterised by volcanoes. Basalt columns such as those at Gangolfsberg and expanses of basalt blocks as in the primeval-style Lösershag are tangible reminders of that volcanic past. The Black Moor near Fladungen with its ice-age flora is one of the most important moorlands in Central Europe. It can be explored on a nature trail. The largest conservation areas are the species-rich landscapes of the Long Rhön, treeless mountain ridges (also knows as “land of the open ferns”) and the Black Mountains with their mountain pastures. Beautiful views from the Kreuzberg, good Klosterbier and snacks in the Franciscan monastery below the summit (Franconia’s “holy mountain”).

The “Hochrhöner” premium walking trail and the “Rhönradweg” cycle trail, both around 180 kilometres long, run through the Rhön. Attractive destinations include well-known spa towns such as Bad Kissingen, Bad Brückenau and Bad Bocklet with their historic spa buildings. Hammelburg is one of Franconia’s oldest wine towns. Due to the low light pollution, this nature park (part of the UNESCO Rhön biosphere reserve) has been designated an International Dark Sky Park.
biosphaerenreservat-rhoen.de

This nature park is known first and foremost for its beech woods. These trees once covered Central Europe but only pockets of them remain - as here in the Steigerwald. The nature park extends between the four cities of Würzburg, Bamberg, Nuremberg and Rothenburg, and from the Main in the north to the Aisch in the south. A soft, forested nature park landscape that does not rise above 500 metres. With vineyards, wide valleys, dry and sparse grassland and carp ponds… and lots of beech trees.

Especially in the Northern and Upper Steigerwald, such as in the natural forest reserves of Brunnstube, Waldstube or the Kleinengelein forest enclave, you can find ancient beech giants dating back more than 300 years. The variety of species is immense there, with 407 macrofungi, 349 moth and 289 wood-living beetle species as well as 15 of the 24 bat species native to Bavaria. Other rare animals include the middle spotted woodpecker, boreal owl, dormouse and wild cat. The Steigerwald is a popular walking region with the 160 km panoramic trail from Bad Windsheim to Bamberg as well as many short routes and circuits.

Tip: In the “Trekking Experience Steigerwald”, walkers can camp in ten specially designated woodland campsites. A treetop trail near Ebrach leads through the forest canopy, with distant views across the nature park from the 42 m tower. Franconian wine is grown on the steep south-facing slopes of many conical and flat-topped hills. Franconian mirror carp thrive in the ponds of the southern Steigerwald, in Aischgrund.
steigerwald-naturpark.de (only in German)

This park extends across the north of Bavaria in the triangle between the cities of Nuremberg, Bamberg and Bayreuth. At the heart of this park is the traditional holiday region of Franconian Switzerland with two main rivers in the Wiesent and the Pegnitz. It also features the large Veldensteiner Forst forest, plus the Upper Main Valley, the Hersbrucker Alb and the Oberpfälzer Jura. A low mountain landscape offers plenty of romance thanks to its pretty half-timbered villages and ruined castles, deep valleys and high plateaus, juniper heaths and mixed woodland, orchards and cherry trees.

The nature park is exceptionally rich in rock formations - typically the bizarre rock needles and towers - as well as caves and grottoes. There are more than two thousand caves, of which six are open to the public, including the famous Devil’s Cave near Pottenstein and the Sophienhöhle. A diverse array of flora with around forty species of orchid, including the striking lady’s slipper, and fifteen endemic species such as the Hersbrucker whitebeam and the Franconian hawkweed. Birds of prey nest in the rocks. The nature park is a popular walking destination, not least due to the well-marked network of trails that extend for more than 5,000 kilometres.

In addition to the many local routes, the Frankenweg and the Franconian Gebirgsweg run through the park. Internationally renowned climbing site. Canoeing on the Wiesent and Pegnitz. Cultural speciality: The tradition of decorating Easter Wells began here. Wells in many towns and villages are decorated for Easter with colourful eggs, flowers and garlands. The quality of Franconian cuisine is known far and wide, and includes beer specialities from more than seventy breweries in the nature park region.
fsvf.de

The Western Woods stretch through the foothills of the Alps to the gates of Augsburg. They are bordered in the east by the Wertach and Schmutter rivers, and in the west by the Mindel. The Danube marks the northern boundary. Central Swabian Schotterriedel (gravel ridges) and Hügelland (undulating hills), a mixture of wooded slopes, arable valleys and charming towns and villages, meadows, woods, hedges, fields, streams and fish ponds.

Three natural spaces: in the south of the park are the “Stauden”, a hilly landscape also known as “Mozart’s land”, because it is was home to the ancestors of Wolfgang Amadeus. In the north you find the “Holzwinkel”, a large expanse of forest. This is where the regional poet Ludwig Ganghofer spent some of his childhood, hence the Ganghofer circular walking trail. In the centre of the park is the “Reischenau”, a wide valley basin washed out by the Zusam river.

Many well-marked routes invite you to walk or cycle through the nature park. Fascinating Fugger palace in Kirchheim. Naturparkhaus information centre in the Cistercian abbey of Oberschönenfeld with a permanent exhibition entitled “Nature and Mankind in the Nature Park”.
naturpark-augsburg.de

This region belongs to the districts of Rosenheim and Traunstein. The protection extends for 120 square kilometres and includes Lake Chiemsee, the largest lake in Bavaria, along with its islands and shoreline. Nature is being preserved there with its ecologically valuable reed beds and mudflats, wooded shores, moorlands and wetlands. The aim is to preserve the beauty and appearance of the lake landscape and to maintain its value as a recreational area.

It borders on some nature reserves (under stricter protection), including the mouth of the Tiroler Achen, a unique river delta that spills into the lake each year and is growing by the size of around two football pitches each year; this is creating new land that is gradually being colonised by plants. Or the Eggstätt-Hemhofer lake area in the northwest, a relic of the last Ice Age, with seventeen individual lakes linked by water courses. They have no above-ground tributaries. Also protected are the Kühwampenmoor and the high moors of Hacken and Rottauer Filz.
chiemsee-alpenland.de