10 Best Natural Sights around The Black Forest

The Titisee is a natural lake in the Black Forest that was formed during the last ice age. Around 10,000 years ago, a glacier extended from the Feldberg mountain area and scoured out a basin in the rock that now holds the water of this landmark lake.

Although it’s not the Black Forest’s largest lake, it is one of the most used by leisure travellers. They come here to swim, sail, rent pedalos or rowing boats, and windsurf. There’s also a lakeshore path if you wish to take a scenic hike.

Triberg Waterfalls (Triberger Wasserfälle) are the highest falls in the Black Forest. The Gutach River descends over a fault in the granite hillside in seven distinct steps. Overall, it cascades down a drop of 163 metres. On summer evenings and during the festive season, the falls are illuminated.

Year-round, people come to hike alongside the waterfall. The trail is partially paved and in places leads to footbridges across the waterfall which enable walkers to get a closer look at the water rushing below.

Wutach Gorge (Wutachschlucht) is one of the Black Forest’s most beautiful canyons. The Wutach River was originally a tributary of the Danube. Glacial activity diverted its path and it now flows into the Rhine instead. Meltwater from the Feldberg glacier helped carve out the steep-sided canyon you see today.

The area has been designated as a nature reserve for almost a century. The edge of the gorge is lush with plants such as ferns. Flowers attract a plethora of bugs, birds, and butterflies.

All Saints Waterfalls (Allerheiligen-Wasserfälle) is located in Allerheiligen in the northern sector of the Black Forest. Measuring at least 66 metres from top to bottom, the Lierbach River cascades as 7 separate falls. This gives the falls their nickname, Seven Tubs (Sieben Bütten).

Originally, the falls were off-limits to the public, confined within All Saints Abbey. However, they’ve been accessible to walkers since the middle of the 19th century when a grant paid for the construction of a hiking trail. Legends abound, and notice boards along the trail tell the stories associated with this magical place.

Geroldsauer Waterfall (Geroldsauer Wasserfall) is unusual in that it is located within the city of Baden Baden. This urban waterfall is modest in stature in comparison to others in the Black Forest, measuring only 9 metres tall. It tumbles down the Grobbach valley and is particularly pretty in late spring when the rhododendrons are in bloom.

Nevertheless, its convenient location makes this a popular destination for those seeking to walk in nature. German composer and pianist Johannes Brahms and French painter Gustave Courbet were once frequent visitors.

Ravenna Gorge (Ravennaschlucht) is a summer favourite with nature hikers in the Black Forest. Even on the hottest days of the year, tall fir trees provide shade. Numerous small waterfalls can be found along its course. You’ll also see the viaduct which carries the Höllental railway.

Today, Ravenna Gorge is a peaceful spot, but in the past, the water of the Ravenna provided energy for riverside sawmills. In the upper part of the gorge, you’ll see the Großjocken mill, dating from 1883. Water flows through the roof of the mill onto the water wheel because of the valley’s gradient.

Wildersee is an almost perfectly circular lake surrounded by hills whose slopes are carpeted with trees. It’s a serene spot that’s extraordinarily pretty. It was formed by glacial processes and is an example of a tarn, where water fills a corrie.

Don’t confuse it with the similarly named Wildsee, about 30 km away. That one is also an attractive lake but located within a bog landscape that feels more open than the terrain that surrounds the Wildersee. A boardwalk enables walkers to loop the lake without being troubled by the wet ground.

The Lynx Trail (Luchspfad) celebrates the big cat species that once roamed wild in the Black Forest. Today, sightings are extremely rare. This 4.5 km long circular trail is narrow and rocky and leads through the woods – an ideal habitat for this creature.

Aimed at families with children, information boards help passers-by get acquainted with the breeding, feeding, and behavioural habits of the lynx. There are telescopes to help you spot potential prey and an ear trumpet through which you can listen to animal noises.

Großvatertanne translates as "Grandfather Tree" and this fir is a magnificent old specimen. With a circumference of 5.45 metres and standing about 45 metres high, it’s one of the largest trees in Germany and is probably about 300 years old.

Hikers who pass Großvatertanne as they cross the forest are sometimes surprised that the trees that surround it are significantly smaller. There seems to be a simple explanation: when the tree was planted, it was on a farm called Schöllkopfhof and stood alone in a meadow. Later, the farm was abandoned and the land became woodland, resulting in this arboreal anomaly.