The Soonwald is one of the largest contiguous areas of forest in Germany. Its altitude (400-600 m; the highest peak is Ellerspring at 657 m), its low population density, and its distance from the large transportation routes of our time make it an ideal recreation area for people seeking peace and quiet. This wooded area is well developed. It has over 800 km of circular hiking paths with observation towers at the most beautiful spots, which afford spectacular panoramas. You can hike here for hours without ever meeting another human being, although traces of more than two thousand years of human history can be found everywhere. There are, on the heights of mountain ridges, ancient Celtic hilltop forts, surrounded by gigantic stone walls which easily exceed several hundred meters in length; there are ancient Roman long-distance roads, constructed some 2,000 years ago at a standardized width of 5 to 6 meters and protected by watchtowers at regular intervals; and there are the remains of luxurious Roman villas. In addition, we find medieval fortresses and castles from the glory days of the political might of Sponheim and Kurtrier. And, there are churches and monasteries in the architectural style typical of Hunsrück with ingeniously painted surfaces and galleries; evidence of a very special race of people, who despite difficult living conditions and scant resources created their own works of art over hundreds of years. A race of people who, incidentally, you still encounter today on the farms of the elevated plains or in the village guest houses.

• Rheinböllen
• Stromberg —home of the 'German Michel''
• Pilgrimage Church Spabrücken
• Simmern
• Kastellaun
• The ruines of Castle Balduinseck
• Gemünden
• Kirchberg
• Nunkirche Church —landmark of the Hunsrück
• Rochusfeld nature preserve
• Ravengiersburg and the Hunsrück Cathedral
• The old Roman road near Dill
• Ellerspring (657 m) and Wildburg Heights (629 m)
• Alteburg (620 m) with Celtic hilltop fort

A picture book worth looking at: Uwe Anhäuser, Kultur-Erlebnis Hunsrück; Idar-Oberstein: Dr. Gebhardt & Hilden, 2000
Wanderführer: Wolfgang Bartels, Hunsrück; DuMont Buchverlag, 1996 und Norbert Forsch, Hunsrück; Deutscher Wanderverlag, 2000
Ergänzende Literatur: Landesgeschichtlicher Exkursionsführer Hunsrück; mit Beiträgen von A. Bauer, B. Lipps, W.H. München, E. Schaaf und K.H. Weichert, Herausgeber: Hunsrückverein e.V., Arbogast Verlag Otterbach, 1993

Morbach with Baldenau Castle

Morbach, a spa resort with specifically healthful climate, lies on the northwest slope of the Idarwald mountain ridge opposite Usarkopf (724 m), Sensweiler Heights (734 m) and Steingerüttelkopf (757 m) mountains. Typical of such northwestern slopes in the Hunsrück region are lowmoors, so-called "Hangbrüche", areas of wet, swampy ground which have developed in undrained depressions of the mountain slopes and form unique biotopes and refuges for rare plants and animals. These lowmoors are fed by an abundant supply of spring water from the Idarwald heights and result from constantly accumulating moisture, which collects in the depressions where alumina (clay) greatly hinders the drainage or runoff of water. The special living conditions in these depressions, which are permanently water logged, have over many hundreds of years led to the creation of unique bogland and peat. In contrast, highmoors draw their water exclusively from rain. Common to both types of moors is a certain lack of nutrients, which leads to the growth of specific plant communities here: rare peatmoss (Sphagnetum magellanici in a narrower sense), various types of sedges and rushes, as well as typical moor plants like the Arctic Starflower (Trientalis europaea), the cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccos), the peat-specific Spotted Orchid (Dactylorhiza sphagnicola), the Bog Asphodel (Narthecium ossifragum), the Round Leaf Sundew (Drosera rotundifolia), which compensates for the lack of nutrients by capturing small insects, or the Royal Fern (Osmunda regalis). Many of the moors are covered with alders and birches. Characteristic of peat-building vegetation is that peatmoss continues growing its entire life in the upper part while the part underneath, the older part, dies and converts to peat. This extremely delicate ecosystem is coming increasingly under protection in order "to preserve moorland as a habitat for rare wild plants and plant species whose existence is threatened" (cited from the state's mission statement). Among the botanically most interesting lowmoors of the region are the protected Ortelsbruch (accessible by wooden footbridges and a nature trail), the Palmbruch (a natural monument) and the Engelswäsgeswiesen near Morbach (a nature preserve since 1987).

Not far from Morbach, near Wederath, where Hunsrückhöhenstraße road and Highway B50 cross, lies the ancient settlement of Belginum on the Roman "Via Ausonia", which leads from Mainz, past Bingen, and on to Trier. The village of Belginum ("Vicus Belginum") was built along a single street ("Straßendorf"), commercially and strategically well placed on the crossroads of the west-to-east-running Via Ausonia and the north-to-south-leading road that connects the Mosel and the Nahe rivers. Both roads already existed in Celtic times. During Belginum's heyday, the second and third centuries AD, about 200-300 inhabitants lived here in buildings that were a combination of living quarters, workshops, and shops. There was about a 600 m long row of houses, right next to each other, with their gabled ends towards the street and possibly a covered sidewalk. There were also two temple areas and a Roman warehouse somewhat north of the settlement. The special significance of this ancient transportation junction was also particularly emphasized by the nearby —in the Wederath district "Hochgerichtsheide"— a Celtic churchyard from the Latène Age and Roman times with 2,500 graves, 500 ash pits and other cemetery features such as funeral gardens, paths, and protective barriers. Today an ambitious museum project, "Belginum Archaeological Park" (Archäologiepark Belginum), has been realized on this still significant transportation junction. Part of this is a museum opened in 2002, whose interior gives you an opportunity to get a comprehensive overview of the entire ancient surroundings: to the west towards the temple district, to the north into the Mosel Valley, to the east towards the ancient Wederath graves field, and to the south towards the settlement Belginum. The community of Morbach, together with the neighboring communities and districts, has striven to create a network of archaeological monuments in Hunsrück.

The movie director Edgar Reitz comes from Morbach. His well-known film "Heimat", the story of a family in Hunsrück, has become a memorial to the area. It isn't surprising then that a key scene in the movie was filmed near Morbach at Baldenau Castle. As the only castle in Hunsrück surrounded by water —built around 1350 by Balduin of Luxemburg, the Archbishiop and Elector of Trier (1307-1354)— its location and unique charm create a perfect setting for great stories. And this was already the case in Balduin's time.

Literature: Rosemarie Cordie-Hackenberg, Der Archäologie- und Kulturpark von Belginum und sein archäologisches Museum; Kreis Bernkastel-Wittlich, Jahrbuch 2002

The Hochwald with its dense forests surrounding the 818 meter high Erbeskopf (the highest mountain west of the Rhine in Germany) is a fertile source of sagas and heroic tales. Many researchers of local history suspect that here in this pristine area of the Hunsrück plays one of the central scenes of the medieval Nibelungenlied.

In this place, according to the saga, Hagen von Tronje slew the noble hero Siegfried at the behest of Brunhilde. In fact, Drohnecken castle at the foot of Erbeskopf mountain is thought to be a possible family seat of Hagen von Tronje. Hagen's friend Hunold is thought to come from the nearby Hunolstein castle. Moreover, the towns of Worms and Alzey —the most important locations in the Nibelungenlied— are little more than a day ride on horseback from the Hunsrück mountain range.

• Birkenfeld
• The museum at Birkenfeld
• Hermeskeil
• Thalfang and Dhronecken castle
• 'Berger Wacken' and Hunolstein castle
• Wildflowers of the Hunsrück
• Erbeskopf
• The "Hunnenring" on the Dollberg (620 m)
• Züsch at the Primstal reservoir
• The source of the Nahe near Selbach
• Lake of Bostal

A picture book worth looking at: Uwe Anhäuser, Heimat am Idarwald; VG Rhaunen, 2001
Hiking Guides: Wolfgang Bartels, Hunsrück; DuMont Buchverlag, 1996 und Norbert Forsch, Hunsrück; Deutscher Wanderverlag, 2000

The Mosel river with its length of 545km, isn't even half as long as the Rhine. It has its source in the southern Vosges, from where it winds through the area of Trier in order to reach a branch of the Hunsrück.

From there, until it meets the Rhine at Koblenz, it flows through the deeply cut, winding valleys of the Rhenish slate mountains, creating a natural boundary at the north of the Hunsrück. The Mosel valley is an important wine growing area with famous names such as Bernkastel, Traben-Trarbach, Zell and Cochem.

• A little trip along the Mosel from Trier to Koblenz
• Trier
• Trittenheim —birthplace of Johannes Trithemius
• Bernkastel
• Nicolaus von Kues, philosopher of the ending Middle Ages
• Cusanusstift
• Traben-Trarbach
• Zell
• Historic cloister Marienburg
• Cochem
• Koblenz

Guide book: Reinhold Schommers, Mosel; DuMont Buchverlag, 2001

The Rhine has covered two thirds of its 1320 km long trip from the Swiss Alps (canton Graubünden) to the North Sea by the time it meets a branch of the Hunsrück near Bingen. Starting here, it flows through the slate mountains of the middle Rhine region. The traveler passes through a very narrow 300m deep ravine where the Hunsrück is a natural boundary. Then he traverses the fascinating landscape of Hunsrück on his way downstream.

Along this way he sees world famous places such as Bacharach, Kaub, or St. Goar with the overwhelming rock of Loreley. He sees Boppard with its impressive Rhine loop and picturesque Rhens. At Koblenz, at the mouth of the Mosel in the Rhine, he has reached the most northerly point of the branch of the Hunsrück. It isn't far from here and the Rhine widens, with all the narrows left behind. The low plains now determine the flow of the Rhine to the North Sea.

• A little trip from Bingen to Koblenz
• Bingen
• Bacharach
• Pfalzgrafenstein: the Pfalz in the Rhine
• Oberwesel
• St. Goar with Loreley
• Loreley and the 'Romantic Rhine'
• Boppard with the Rhine loop
• Rhens
• Koblenz

Hiking guide: Wolfgang Bartels, Hunsrück; DuMont Buchverlag, 1996 und Norbert Forsch, Hunsrück; Deutscher Wanderverlag, 2000

The region of the Nahe Valley-Hunsrück, the historic Nahegau, is divided into three administrative districts: to the east lies the district of Bad Kreuznach with its administrative seat in the city of Bad Kreuznach, to the north is the district of Rhein-Hunsrück with its administrative seat in Simmern, and to the west is the district of Birkenfeld with its administrative seat in the city of Birkenfeld. To the north there are also the districts of Cochem-Zell and Bernkastel-Wittlich bordering the Mosel river. Although the form these districts have today only dates from the administrative reform of the Rhineland-Pfalz region in 1969/1970, their origins can be found 200 years earlier. First under the French ruler Napoleon and then, after the reconstruction of Europe by the Viennese congress, under the Kingdom of Prussia. In fact, in the year 1798, under French rule (1798-1814), the feudal system with its class privilege, serfdom and drudgery was eliminated, and, to ensure the division of authority, administrative and judicial powers were separated. All religious faiths received equal rights, and in 1804 these rights were implemented by a unified code of law, the Napoleonic civil code (Code civile Napoléon). As a result of an act of the Viennese Congress, the final act of 9 June 1815, the Prussians were awarded the area north of the Nahe. On 14 May 1816, the "royal government" in Koblenz officially announced the newly formed "districts" as administrative units, so this date is considered the official "birthday" of these districts.

• District of Bad Kreuznach
• District of Rhein-Hunsrück (Simmern)
• District of Birkenfeld

It should be mentioned that the historical "Nahegau" only encompassed the eastern part of the District of Birkenfeld. The border ran along the Heimbach, a few kilometers west of Baumholder, along the Nahe up to Siesbach, just before Idar-Oberstein, along the Siesbach almost to the Erbeskopf, and from there over the ridge of the Idar forest to the Idarkopf. A look at the map here also shows that the mouth of the Nahe near Bingen (belonging to the district of Mainz-Bingen) and the northwestern part of Hunsrück (belonging to the districts of Cochem-Zell and Bernkastel-Wittlich) complete the region.

Along with the federal and state duties dictated, the district administration is also responsible for schools, social welfare, youth welfare offices, building development, land utilization, and fire protection. In addition, it deals with waste management as well as the maintenance of local streets. Above and beyond these central administrative tasks, the district also provides for the economic development of the community and region. In this respect, the expression "sustainability", as well as sustainable development, plays a central role, since its professed goal is to ensure the "continuance of a balance in the relationship between nature and its ability to regenerate, on the one hand, with its claims by humans, on the other". Alongside its obligatory duties, the district also takes on so-called "voluntary" duties, depending upon the tax income. Among these are the maintenance of adult evening classes, music schools, museums, theaters, sports fields, and swimming pools.