ヘッシシュ・リヒテナウの天然記念物・トップ20

Former natural monument: Dead oak trunk about 1.5 km west of the outskirts of Nieste. The trunk is in the Gerholdsberg forest, in the north of the Sensenstein site, on hiking trail P11 "Niester Riesen". The oak is dead, but the remaining trunk with main branches is impressive.

A great, ancient oak tree stands near the Sensenstein youth castle.

Legend of the Frau Holle pond: The lake forms the entrance to Frau Holle's subterranean realm. At the bottom lies her castle of pure silver, surrounded by lush gardens full of flowers, fruit and vegetables. Every noon the beautiful young woman appears at her lake to take her bath in the middle of the pond. That's why this place is also called 'Bathroom of Frau Holle'. As the light earth mother and goddess of fertility, Mother Holle gave people rich harvests. She brought the rain that brought growth to the fields, and when she shook out their beds, the snow that covered everything. If they were angered, they brought misfortune and misery to the land.

The Sensenstein Castle (usually just called Sensenstein in the vernacular), today a castle stable, stood until the beginning of the 17th century as a border security to Lower Saxony in the area of today's municipality of Nieste, district of Kassel, in Hesse. Today only high ramparts remind us of the former size of the castle complex as a ground monument. The buildings have been completely demolished. Right next door is the youth castle and sports training center Sensenstein of the district of Kassel. From the former castle grounds you can see through the trees into the Kassel basin and the Kaufunger forest. (Source: Wikipedia)

For the Niester giants, the giant legend of the two castles Sichelnstein and Sensenstein is spun on. Burg Sensenstein, which prevented Otto the Quaden from invading Hesse, was a thorn in his side. In his anger he made a pact with the devil. In exchange for his soul, the devil threw a huge stone at the Scythe Stone. But he was protected by God and the stone fell into the Niestetal. The devil flew away, but Otto did not give up and made a pact with the giants. At night they should sneak to the scythe stone and smash it. However, the forest around the castle was protected by a ghost and his dwarves and elves. They confronted the giants, but when they attacked anyway, the spirit froze them and grew into mighty trees. The real story, however, is a bit less spectacular. The Niester Riesen is a test area from 1887. At that time, the Kaufunger Forest forestry office planted various exotic species on behalf of Prussia in order to investigate the growth and wood quality of exotic tree species. The Niester giants are actually a scenic highlight, as they are in the middle of the normal forest and the site with the redwoods, Douglas firs and more clearly stands out. The small (yet somehow large) arboretum is enhanced by information boards.

A trip to the huge trees is worthwhile. The pictures do not really capture the actual size. They are gigantic 🌳

Behind the youth castle Sensenstein stands this mighty oak, which is slowly approaching its end. But which is still an imposing and impressive sight.

Impressive giant trees can be admired here.