Natural beauty in abundance: the Berchtesgaden region

By Verena Wolff Apr 6, 2010, 13:03 GMT

Berchtesgaden, Germany - Fog is still clinging to the mountains as the sun has just risen. To the west, the lights of the town of Berchtesgaden are flickering and northwards towards Salzburg, more lamps are lighting up.

But 1,000 metres up on the Obersalzberg mountain, in the Obersalzberg Hotel things are still quiet as the guests are slowly rousing themselves out of their beds. Much higher above them, atop the 1,834-metre mountain, reigns the Kehlsteinhaus - or as it is often called in English, the 'Eagle's Nest.'

The Obersalzberg looms directly over the market township of Berchtesgaden, which this year is celebrating the 200th anniversary of its belonging to Bavaria.

During the Third Reich it was one of dictator Adolf Hitler's favourite spots. A documentation centre and excursions to the Kehlsteinhaus are designed to deal with this difficult period of history and are told from the point of view of the families who had lived in the Obersalzberg community before the 'power takeover' by the Nazis.

Hitler came to this tiny corner of Bavaria, located not far from the Koenigssee lake and barely 20 kilometres from the Austrian border, during the 1920s. Initially he was a normal vacationer.

In 1925, after his detention in Landsberg am Lech, he returned to live in a wooden cabin in the forest - where he dictated the second half of his book 'Mein Kampf.' Later on he rented a small country house which after his power takeover in Germany he bought and converted into a pompous 'mountain residence.' Little by little, the region became the 'Fuehrersperrgebiet' (Fuehrer off-limits area).

To this day the only way to the lofty heights of the Kehlsteinhaus is via a mountain road. Buses take visitors on the curving stretch to around 1,700 metres up the mountain. The final 134 metres are taken care of by an elevator inside the mountain. Those who are fit like to cover the final climb by foot, taking in a view of Berchtesgaden below, nestled in among the imposing Bavarian Alps and, in the distance, the Koenigssee Lake.

Like this setting, the overall Berchtesgaden region has a great deal of picture-postcard charm to offer - be it colourful houses and farms, the rugged mountain landscapes, the dark-blue lakes, or the deep verdant valleys, and Germany's sole Alpine national park.

'Nor should one forget the deeply-rooted customs and a world-class culture,' says Stephan Koehl, spokesman for the region.

And then there are the unique characters of the region, such as Franz Pfnuer, Europe's last historic cannon and firearms maker, who manufactures by himself each and every wooden or metal part. His products are greatly needed, because the so-called noise-making customs are scarcely more prevalent anywhere than they are in Berchtesgaden.

The Koenigssee Lake at the foot of a range of peaks - the Watzmann, Jenner and Steinerner Meer - is a very special place. The church on the St Bartholomae peninsula, for example, is one of the most-photographed objects anywhere in the world.

For those who like a more active vacation, the 210-square-kilometre national park is waiting with its 230 kilometres of hiking trails. Amid the gentian and edelweiss wild flowers, hikers can spot groundhogs and chamois - and with a bit of luck, maybe a golden eagle.

And then there is a real challenge - bathing in the Funtensee lake. But this is only possible in high summer, when the water has warmed up to maybe 10 to 12 degrees celsius. In the winter, the lake is frozen.