Großer Inselsberg is a mountain in the
Thuringian Forest
The Thuringian Forest (''Thüringer Wald'' in German language, German ) is a mountain range in the southern parts of the Germany, German state of Thuringia, running northwest to southeast. Skirting from its southerly source in foothills to a gorg ...
with a height of above sea level, located on
Rennsteig in the districts of
Gotha and
Schmalkalden-Meiningen. It is the fourth-highest distinct mountain of
Thuringia
Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area.
Er ...
, after
Großer Beerberg (), Schneekopf () and Großer Finsterberg () and forms a landmark that can be viewed in particular from northern and western directions.
Geography
The summit of Großer Inselsberg is located about NNE of
Brotterode and southwest of
Bad Tabarz. It forms a narrow, arched plateau of about length. The steep slopes are marked by deep dents and spurs formed by weathering.
The summit has a dominance radius of extending to Sommerbachskopf ( a.s.l.) and a prominence of relative to the saddle at ''Heuberghaus''.
With the exception of the buildings, the summit region of Großer Inselsberg has been a
nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...
since 30 March 1961.
Geology
Großer Inselsberg is a
rhyolitic butte that has withstood the weathering of the surrounding softer rock layers. The near-surface rocks of the summit region belong to the lower vulcanites of the ''Oberhof'' sequence in the lower
Rotliegend
The Rotliegend, Rotliegend Group or Rotliegendes () is a lithostratigraphic unit (a sequence of rock strata) of latest Carboniferous to Guadalupian (middle Permian) age that is found in the subsurface of large areas in western and central Europe ...
and crop out in ''Reitsteine'', a steep escarpment southeast of the summit. They are embedded in the conglomerates, sandstones and siltstones of the ''Goldlauter'' sequence to the north and the grainy
gneiss of
Cambrian
The Cambrian ( ) is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, and the Phanerozoic Eon. The Cambrian lasted 51.95 million years from the end of the preceding Ediacaran period 538.8 Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Ordov ...
origin to the south. An abrupt transition between the Inselsberg rhyolite and the gneiss can be observed along the west–east Inselsberg
fault.
Flora
The potential natural vegetation of the mountain is a
beech
Beech (genus ''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to subtropical (accessory forest element) and temperate (as dominant element of Mesophyte, mesophytic forests) Eurasia and North America. There are 14 accepted ...
forest, on the northern slope with an undergrowth of
heath bedstraw
''Galium saxatile'' or heath bedstraw is a species of flowering plant in the family Rubiaceae. It is related to cleavers.
''Galium saxatile'' is a perennial mat-forming herb, found on grassland, moors, heaths and woods. It can reach a height of ...
, on the sunny southern side with
woodrush. Some near-natural beech forests are preserved on the southern and the northeastern slope. The common
spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' ( ), a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal (taiga) regions of the Northern hemisphere. ''Picea'' ...
has been introduced through silviculture. The once indigenous
silver fir has disappeared. Other naturally occurring tree species include
sycamore,
Norway maple,
ash,
elm,
sessile oak,
pedunculate oak,
silver birch,
alder
Alders are trees of the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus includes about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few species ex ...
,
larch
Larches are deciduous conifers in the genus ''Larix'', of the family Pinaceae (subfamily Laricoideae). Growing from tall, they are native to the cooler regions of the northern hemisphere, where they are found in lowland forests in the high la ...
,
goat willow, and
wild cherry.
Name
The name is popularly ascribed to the solitary aspect of Großer Inselsberg and is said to be derived from German ''einzeln'' ("solitary") or ''Insel'' (Island), but is probably derived from a stream called ''Emse'' or in the Middle Ages ''Enze'' which has its source on the northwestern slope of the mountain.
Tourism
The mountain is one of the best known excursion destinations in Thuringia. Its summit is crossed by the traditional mountain path
Rennsteig, whose route is shared here by the European long-distance hiking path E3 and the international mountain hiking path Eisenach–Budapest (EB). A road facilitating access to the summit branches off the state road 1024 between Brotterode and Tabarz, and parking spaces are provided. A youth hostel, a restaurant and an outlook tower serve tourists.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grosser Inselsberg
Mountains of Thuringia
Thuringian Forest