The Ahr HillsElkins, T.H. (1972). ''Germany'' (3rd ed.). London: Chatto & Windus, 1972. . ( or ''Ahreifel'' ) are a range of low mountains and hills up to and long in the

Eifel The Eifel (; , ) is a low mountain range in western Germany, eastern Belgium and northern Luxembourg. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the southern area of the German-speaking Com ...

region of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, which lie roughly southwest of

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

on the border between the German states of

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

and

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

. The forested Ahr Hills have numerous tourist destinations (e. g. Aremberg Castle and the Effelsberg Radio Telescope) and the section of a

Roman road Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...

with its ancient

Eifel Aqueduct The Eifel Aqueduct was one of the longest aqueducts of the Roman Empire. The aqueduct, constructed in AD 80, carried water some from the hilly Eifel region of what is now Germany to the ancient city of Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium (presen ...

Geography

Location

The Ahr Hills are part of the

, the bulk of which lies to the south and southwest of it. It lies on the left, i.e. northwestern, bank of the river Ahr, roughly 40 km southwest of

. Sometimes the ridge on the right, southeastern, bank of the Ahr in the area of Altenahr is also counted as part of the Ahr Hills. This small range is bordered by a square enclosed by the

Grafschaft A was originally the name given to the administrative area in the Holy Roman Empire over which a count, or , presided as judge. It is often, therefore, translated as 'county'. The term has survived as a placename in German-speaking countries, for ...

and

Remagen Remagen () is a town in Germany in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, in the district of Ahrweiler (district), Ahrweiler. It is about a one-hour drive from Cologne, just south of Bonn, the former West Germany, West German seat of government. It i ...

to the east, by Altenahr to the southeast, Antweiler to the south, Blankenheim to the west and Bad Münstereifel and

Rheinbach Rheinbach () is a town in the Rhein-Sieg-Kreis district ( Landkreis), in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It belongs to the administrative district (Regierungsbezirk) of Cologne. Geography Situated south-west of Bonn and south of Cologne, Rhein ...

to the north. To the north the terrain of the Ahr Hills descends into the Cologne Bay, to the east it drops down to the

Voreifel The Voreifel ("Fore-Eifel" or "Pre-Eifel") is the name of a settlement area in the southern part of the Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a term that grew out of the local speech. The region of the Voreifel includes the tow ...

and the valley of the

Middle Rhine Middle Rhine (, ; kilometres 529 to 660 of the Rhine) is the section of the Rhine between Bingen and Bonn in Germany. It flows through the Rhine Gorge (), a formation created by erosion, which happened at about the same rate as an uplift i ...

, to the south on the far side of the Ahr is the

proper (up to 747 m), to the west the Zitter Forest and in the northwest the North Eifel.

Hills

The summits of the Ahr Hills include the: * Aremberg (623.8 m), with Aremberg Castle - near Aremberg * Michelsberg (586.1 m) near Mahlberg * Junkerberg (543.4 m) - near Reetz * Knippberg (537.3 m) – between Rodert and Scheuerheck * Hühnerberg (Lommersdorf) (533.5 m) – near Lommersdorf * Sommerberg (c. 527 m) – between Reetz and Rohr * Kalvarienberg (Alendorf) (522.8 m) – near Alendorf * Kopnück (514.4 m) – near Kop Nück * Hochthürmerberg (499.9 m) – near Lanzerath * Hühnerberg (Kirchsahr) (c. 398 m) – near Kirchsahr * Tomberg (308.5 m) and the ruins of the Tomburg Castle - near Wormersdorf

Streams

The Ahr Hills is crossed by the following streams, some of which have their sources here: * Ahr (source in Blankenheim) * Erft (source on the western edge) * Liersbach, * Sahrbach, * Steinbach *

Swist The Swist is a stream, long, in the German Rhineland. It rises on the northern edge of the Eifel at 330 metres above sea level and empties from the right and southeast into the Rhine tributary, the Erft, between Weilerswist and (a district of ...

(source near Kalenborn). In July 2021 the area was hit by severe rainfall and subsequent heavy flooding.

Places

The following towns and villages border the Ahr Hills: *

(north) *

Meckenheim Meckenheim (; ) is a town in the Rhein-Sieg district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Geographical situation Meckenheim is situated approximately 15 km south-west of Bonn and separated from the German former capital (1949� ...

(northeast) *

(east) *

Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler () is a spa town in the German States of Germany, Bundesland of Rhineland-Palatinate that serves as the Capital (political), capital of the Ahrweiler (district), Ahrweiler district. The Bundesautobahn 61, A61 motorway conn ...

(south) * Antweiler (south) * Blankenheim (west) * Bad Münstereifel (northwest) Other places in the Ahr Hills include: * Altenahr * Ahrbrück * Aremberg * Effelsberg *

* Hilberath * Kalenborn * Mahlberg * Mutscheid * Ohlenhard * Odesheim * Rupperath * Wershofen

Tourism

The ''Große Eifelroute'' ("Great Eifel Route"), a tourist route, runs through the Ahr Hills. There are also numerous footpaths for walkers. Amongst its places of interest are Aremberg Castle, on the eponymous hill above Aremberg, and the ruins of the 11th-century castle of Tomburg above Wormersdorf with views of Cologne. Near Effelsberg is the Effelsberg Radio Telescope, on the summit of the Michelsberg is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

, dedicated to the

Archangel Michael Michael, also called Saint Michael the Archangel, Archangel Michael and Saint Michael the Taxiarch is an archangel and the warrior of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The earliest surviving mentions of his name are in third- and second ...

and regularly visited by

pilgrim The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

s and walkers. Part of the Roman

, which runs through the northern part of the Ahr Hills, is a popular tourist destination. The Ahr Valley with its wine centres is also picturesque; the southeastern slopes of the Ahr Hills above the Ahr have

vineyards A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

through which one may walk on the

Red Wine Trail __NOTOC__ The Red Wine Trail (''Rotweinwanderweg''), opened in 1972, is a trail that runs high above the floor of the Ahr Valley linking the wine villages of the Ahr wine region in Germany along the River Ahr. The route runs from Altenahr via Mays ...

(''Rotweinwanderweg'').

References

{{Authority control Central Uplands Regions of the Eifel Regions of Rhineland-Palatinate Regions of North Rhine-Westphalia Landscapes of Rhineland-Palatinate Mountain ranges of North Rhine-Westphalia Mountain ranges of Rhineland-Palatinate Ahr