Kandel (mountain)
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The Kandel is a mountain, 1,241.4 metres high, in the
Black Forest The Black Forest ( ) is a large forested mountain range in the States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is th ...
in the south of
Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
,
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 ...
.


Geography

The Kandel is located 25 km northeast of
Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Its built-up area has a population of abou ...
in the Breisgau and has a height of 1,241 m (4,072 ft). The Kandel belongs to the Central Black Forest
gneiss Gneiss (pronounced ) is a common and widely distributed type of metamorphic rock. It is formed by high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic processes acting on formations composed of igneous or sedimentary rocks. This rock is formed under p ...
region. The overall shape of the
massif A massif () is a principal mountain mass, such as a compact portion of a mountain range, containing one or more summits (e.g. France's Massif Central). In mountaineering literature, ''massif'' is frequently used to denote the main mass of an ...
was tectonically formed: the Kandel block rises table-like in a northwesterly direction from the
plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...
around Sankt Peter. It is surrounded by faults, some of which form clear steps in the terrain; for example the Rhine Plain lies more than 1,000 metres below the Kandel and the summits on the other side of the Elz valley are 500-600 metres lower. The ongoing uplifting of the Kandel block from the Rhine Plain (1-2 mm/year) sometimes manifests itself in earth tremors. The Kandel massif is cut by deep radial valleys into mountain ridges, some rounded and some rocky. The steep mountainsides reach heights of 600 metres in the southwest (Glotter valley), 650 metres in the northwest (Elz valley) and a good 700 metres in the northeast (valley of the Wild Gutach). Only in the southeast does the mountain descend more gradually towards Sankt Peter by about 500 metres and to the ledge over the Zweribach waterfalls by a good 200 metres. The extensive grasslands of the southern slopes often exhibit clear thermals and are influenced by heavy thunderstorm weather patterns of the Breisgau that often arise here. The elements of the mountain block that go back to the
ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...
glaciations are less obvious here that in other Black Forest mountains of comparable height.


Kandel Rock

''Kandel Rock'' () is located at a height of about 1,100 m (3,609 ft) on the western slope. Although in 1981, some two thousand cubic metres of rock collapsed, it is still attractive to climbers. Its upper part is called the ''Devil's Pulpit'', because legend has it that this is the place where witches come together to dance with the devil on
Walpurgis Night Walpurgis Night (), an abbreviation of Saint Walpurgis Night (from the German language, German ), also known as Saint Walpurga's Eve (alternatively spelled Saint Walburga's Eve) and Walpurgisnacht, is the Vigil#Eves of religious celebrations ...
(''Walpurgisnacht''), which is the night of 30 April/1 May. The rockfall on the Devil's Pulpit occurred on Walpurgis Night in 1981.


Sports and leisure activities

The Kandel offers various leisure activities which are typical for mountainous regions, including hiking and biking trails, for example the southern part of the ''Kandelhöhenweg''. The ''Kandel Rock'' (German: ''Großer Kandelfels'') can be climbed and there are starting points for hang-gliding and paragliding. The mountain is also famous for its drive up, which is used by racing cyclists. The road is 12 km (7.5 mi) long and covers a difference in height of 926 meters (3038 ft), so it has a gradient of 7.7%. The summit can also be reached by bus starting in St. Peter up to five times a day. In 2000, the Kandel was the third stage of the
Deutschland Tour The Deutschland Tour (English: ''Tour of Germany'' and sometimes ''Deutschland-Rundfahrt'' in German) is the most important Race stage, multi-stage road bicycle racing, road bicycle race in Germany. Initially the race was held in May/June, but fro ...
. Udo Bölts was the first one who reached the summit. An individual time trial took place within the context of the Regio-Tour on August 13, 2015. Tony Martin won the race with a time of 33 minutes and 43 seconds. Further, there is a so called “Kandel marathon” every year. The route starts at the market place of
Waldkirch Waldkirch () is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located 15 kilometers northeast of Freiburg im Breisgau. While the English translation of its name is ''Forest Church'', it is known as the "town of mechanical organs", where fairground org ...
, it is 12.2 km (7.58 mi) long and covers a difference in height of 940 m (3084 ft). The time of Wolfgang Muenzel, who ran the marathon in 48 minutes and 39 seconds, has been unbeaten since 1986. In Winter, there are ski lifts in the summit region and a 5 km (3.12 mi) long
cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...
trail is being prepared if snow conditions are good.
Ski mountaineering Ski mountaineering (abbreviated to skimo) is a skiing discipline that involves climbing mountains either on skis or carrying them, depending on the steepness of the ascent, and then descending on skis. There are two major categories of equipment ...
is also possible. Even though slopes near the summit sometimes don’t have ski lifts, skiers still go skiing in these areas. The most precipitous descent is the so called ''Nordhang'' (once called ''Hess-Hang'') which was built in 1934 and which is the highest part of the former descent to Waldkirch. The Bergwacht Schwarzwald, a mountain rescue which has a station on the Kandel, is responsible for the mountain rescue service in the region. Merdingen Kandel jm09571.jpg, The Kandel


Attractions

In the early modern period, the Kandel was known as the “ Blockula of the Black Forest”. The Elztal was a hot-spot for witch-hunting in Germany. The
Walpurgis Night Walpurgis Night (), an abbreviation of Saint Walpurgis Night (from the German language, German ), also known as Saint Walpurga's Eve (alternatively spelled Saint Walburga's Eve) and Walpurgisnacht, is the Vigil#Eves of religious celebrations ...
is a tradition that is still practiced today. According to a myth, the witch Gfällrote was haunting the region around the Kandel. The upper part of the ''Kandel Rock'', the so called ''Teufelskanzel'' (''Devil’s Pulpit)'', collapsed in the night from April 30 to March 1 in 1981. Roughly 2,000 cubic meters of stone became loose, fell down and have been lying underneath the rock since then. Some residents believed in a demonic origin of the rockfall as it happened in the Walpurgis Night and a broom was found in the rubble. The reason for the rockfall is still unknown as seismic analysis excluded an earthquake. The geographer Werner Bätzing assumed that the reason was frost weathering which often happens during spring as water freezes and thaws alternately. Icicles were found in the rubble supporting the frost weathering hypothesis. The broom belonged to Peter Rambach, a rock mechanic, who performed safety measures in the months before the collapse. On December 5, 2004 there was an earthquake of magnitude 5.43. The epicenter was in the area of
Waldkirch Waldkirch () is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located 15 kilometers northeast of Freiburg im Breisgau. While the English translation of its name is ''Forest Church'', it is known as the "town of mechanical organs", where fairground org ...
/Kandelmassiv, the center of the earthquake was around 12 km (7.5 mi) further below.


External links


The rockfall of the Devil's Pulpit


References

{{Authority control Mountains and hills of Baden-Württemberg Mountains and hills of the Black Forest One-thousanders of Germany Walpurgis Night