Elmstein Valley
| Elmstein Valley | ||
|---|---|---|
 Place and castle ruins Elmstein |
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| location | Rhineland-Palatinate , Germany | |
| Waters | Speyerbach and tributaries | |
| Mountains | middle Palatinate Forest | |
| Geographical location | 49 ° 21 ' N , 7 ° 57' E | |
|
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| rock | Red sandstone | |
| height | 470 to 170 m | |
| length | 24 km | |
The Elmsteiner Tal is a valley region in the central Palatinate Forest between the villages of Frankeneck and Johanniskreuz ( Rhineland-Palatinate ). The Speyerbach , a left tributary of the Rhine, flows through the valley .
geography
Geographical location
The largest part of the Elmsteiner Valley lies in the Bad Dürkheim district , two smaller parts belong to Neustadt an der Weinstrasse and the Südliche Weinstrasse district . The valley is 24 km long and falls in a west-east direction from about 470 m above sea level. Above sea level to 170 m .
Waters
The Elmsteiner Tal is traversed by the Speyerbach. With its tributaries, the most abundant in water here are the Helmbach and the Breitenbach , the Speyerbach drains the valley, whose winding course it determines, and the surrounding heights.
mountains
The elevations on the left, i.e. north of the valley, with a maximum of 515.6 m ( Mückenberg ) are significantly lower than those on the right. There the Bloskülb reach 570 and the Brogberg 567 m . The highest point in the west, at the same time the beginning of the valley, is on the Rhine / Moselle watershed , which in this area separates the Speyerbach and Schwarzbach catchment areas . In the east, the valley ends at the confluence of the Hochspeyerbach and the Speyerbach.
Attractions
Buildings
The four medieval castles above the valley, namely Elmstein , Breitenstein , Erfenstein and Spangenberg , secured the domination of the noble families ruling here for centuries. Today its ruins are visited by tourists , not least because of the legend of the Leather Bridge ; this is said to have led between the castles of Erfenstein and Spangenberg over the Speyerbach.
Of the other historical buildings in the valley, the tower ruins of the church in Appenthal, built in 1488, are best known.
Spangenberg Castle
Appenthal church tower ruin
Forge Elmstein
Speyerbach in Elmstein
Fountain in Elmstein
Museums and themed hiking trails
Three museums in Elmstein provide information about work in the forest:
Two of them are located in the same historical building: The forest work museum on the upper floor deals extensively with all activities that were relevant in the forest. The heraldic forge in the basement was an iron hammer that used the Speyerbach water to generate energy for the blacksmith's trade; today electricity is generated here and fed into the public grid.
The old seed cycle has a special focus on the history of forestry and provides information on the use of forests, seed extraction and afforestation.
The information boards on the Trift hiking trail along the Speyerbach explain the Trift technology . The Elmstein municipality's tourist information office offers guided hikes.
Economy and Infrastructure
economy
From the Middle Ages to modern times, forestry was the main industry in the entire region ; numerous drift systems were used to transport sawn timber on the streams, the water power of which was also used to drive mills and hammer mills .
Settlement
The Elmsteiner Tal is very sparsely populated, the population is less than 3000. The most important municipality is Elmstein , from which the name comes, with its smaller districts. With the decline in forestry, more and more people in the valley are commuting to work outside the country.
traffic
The valley is made accessible to road traffic by the state road 499, which leads from Frankeneck to Johanniskreuz and connects the federal highways 39 ( Frankenstein - Neustadt an der Weinstraße ) and 48 ( Hochspeyer - Bad Bergzabern ). There is also a bus connection with line 517 (Neustadt an der Weinstrasse - Iggelbach ), its travel time is about an hour.
To prevent motorcycle accidents, the winding road through the Elmstein Valley is closed to motorcycle traffic on weekends in the summer half-year (April to October); only residents - not residents - are allowed to drive the route with the motorcycle during the closing time.
The Kuckucksbähnel runs along the Speyerbach from Frankeneck to Elmstein , which was opened in 1909 and on which passenger traffic took place until 1960. In 1984 the line was reactivated, and since then the cuckoo chain has been used as a museum railway for tourist purposes.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ General Directorate for Cultural Heritage Rhineland-Palatinate (ed.): Informational directory of cultural monuments - Bad Dürkheim district. Mainz 2020, p. 33 f. (PDF; 5.1 MB).
- ↑ Forestry Museum. In: webmuseen.de. Retrieved November 3, 2011 .
- ↑ Sights in Elmstein - The Elmstein Forest Work Museum. (No longer available online.) Elmstein community, archived from the original on October 28, 2011 ; Retrieved November 3, 2011 .
- ↑ Sights in Elmstein - The Elmstein coat of arms forge. (No longer available online.) Elmstein community, archived from the original on October 28, 2011 ; Retrieved November 3, 2011 .
- ↑ The Elmsteiner Museum "Alte Samenklenge". Old seed cycle, accessed November 3, 2011 .
- ↑ Paths to wood: Elmstein, Trift hiking trail. Retrieved November 3, 2011 .
- ↑ Hiking - Trift hiking trail in Elmstein. (No longer available online.) Verbandsgemeinde Lambrecht, archived from the original on May 19, 2011 ; Retrieved November 3, 2011 .