After a good night’s sleep we started the day with a delicious buffet breakfast at the Park Hotel Post setting us up nicely for the day ahead.
Our morning began with a stroll over to the cobbled Münsterplatz (main square) where a large market was already underway. The market takes place each morning with the exception of Sundays, comprising of approximately 150 stalls offering fresh local produce, fruit, vegetables, flowers, wine and handicrafts. There’s also lots of appetising food vendors serving up local delicacies including the local Freiburg sausage.
Leaving the market behind, it was then just a short walk to the Schlossberg funicular station for the three minute ride up the 456m hill. Single tickets €3.50 (return €6). If the funicular is not already at the lower station passengers can press a button to request its arrival as we needed to do.
We enjoyed our morning ride over the treetops and from there followed a path taking around 10 minutes to the summit. One of the paths is accessible for wheelchairs and prams as it winds its way up the hillside.
At the summit we followed signs to the nearby Schlossbergturm which was erected in 2002 and is free to ascend. After huffing and puffing our way up the winding tower steps we were rewarded with some beautiful views of the city below and the Black Forest beyond from the upper observation deck.
Although there is no longer a castle on the site, there are visible remains of Baroque fortifications. It was here that the Dukes of Swabian built their first castle almost 1,000 years ago, giving the Schlossberg its name.
From the viewpoint on the other side of the hill there are views over the Baden region’s vineyards. Rather than ride back down to town on the funicular we chose to take the shady path which only took a few minutes to reach the lower station.
We’d enjoyed a lovely time exploring Freiburg but the time had come to check out of our hotel, pack up the car and head to pastures new, our first stop being at the Ravenna Gorge in the scenic Höllental, taking around 40 minutes. The car park was already quite full when we arrived but fortunately we managed to find somewhere to park. Payment for the car park is either by app or at the hotel reception (several minutes walk away) so we decided to download the parking app as we thought it could come in useful during the rest of our stay.
We then took a short hike through the deeply wooded valley towards the impressive 36m high railway viaduct which spans the gorge. Continuing our walk the trail heads uphill through a scenic narrow gorge which is quite steep in places but accessed quite easily by boardwalks and flights of steps.
The waterfalls and cascades are very impressive with the two largest being 16m and 6m respectively. It was a very hot day but the tall fir trees thankfully provided plenty of shade from the hot midday sun as we explored the area.
Close to the viaduct are a series of buildings collectively known as Hofgut Sternen with these comprising a hotel, it’s history dating back to the 12th century, a restaurant, glass-blowing workshop and cuckoo clock shop. A stand out feature on the side of one of the buildings is a giant sized working cuckoo clock which was lovely to see. Hofgut Sternen.
Back in the car it was then a 30 minute drive to view another scenic waterfall on the northern end of the Menzenschwand glacial valley. There is a large car park 1 km away with additional parking close to the trail at the Zum Kuckuck cafe, enabling a hike to be combined with a refreshment stop.
The hiking trail follows a stream which flows through the gorge and then cascades down the rocks. It’s a beautiful walk as the path meanders up steps and across wooden bridges. There are possibilities to continue further but we retraced our steps back to the car after viewing the waterfall.
The pretty village of St. Blasien Menzenschwand lies a short distance away so we made a short stop there as well as it has traditional styled houses that were all looking beautiful with their window boxes brimming with geraniums.
Back on our way again it took just ten minutes to reach the town of St. Blasien. This small spa town is noted for its domed cathedral, thermal baths and beautiful gardens with a backdrop of the Feldberg mountain.
We prioritised visiting the cathedral which is dedicated to St. Blasius, the early Christian bishop and martyr who is also the patron saint of this small Black Forest town. A Benedictine monastery was established in the 9th century with a new abbey church built in early classical style following a fire in 1768.
The magnificent cathedral is of Barque style and boasts the largest dome of its kind north of the Alps, measuring 36 metres wide and 62 metres tall.
The interior contains 20 pillars that support the huge dome which is adorned with large fresco windows. The appearance is quite unusual as it is completely white and flooded with natural daylight streaming in from its domed glass windows.
Leaving the cathedral we continued our tour around the town stopping for some delicious black cherry ice cream cones before returning to the car. Our drive then onto Schluchsee the largest of the Black Forest lakes.
The lake has a very picturesque setting and is very popular for water sports and bathing during the warm summer months. We managed to park by the lakeside from where we strolled around part of the lake shore as far as the Amalienruhe which is a rocky outcrop with a wooden ‘lookout’ pavilion located on a small peninsula south of the railway line. From the pavilion we were treated to some lovely views of the lake and the village beyond.
We slowly made our way back to the car and after a drive through the small town which features half timbered houses, shops and cafes, we continued on to our overnight accommodation 3 km out of town at the idyllic Hotel Hirschen. Here we received a warm welcome and were shown up to our traditionally styled room with its own balcony overlooking the village church and surrounding countryside.
After settling in, we enjoyed a delicious meal in the hotel’s contemporary styled restaurant where we sampled the best of Black Forest cooking accompanied by refreshing glasses of local beer.
As it was still light we then walked off our dinner with a stroll through the pretty village with its lush meadows, gentle sounds of cow bells and backdrop of hills and dense forests. The perfect end to a memorable day exploring the Black Forest.
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