메르제니히‬에서 가장 멋진 ‪20‬개의 천연기념물

The tower bears a weather vane inscribed with "Monte Sophia" and, together with the Roman Tower, is one of the prominent viewpoints on the reclaimed Sophienhöhe, which was once used as a spoil heap for the Hambach open-cast mine. The HöllerHorn reaches approximately 291.5 meters above sea level, making it one of the highest points on the Sophienhöhe, but it lies just below the summit level of the Roman Tower (301.8 meters above sea level).

A sign at the site explains that the Celts considered trees important living beings and attributed special properties to them. The Tree of Life Circle takes up this concept and presents different tree species, each symbolically assigned to a specific time of year, similar to a Celtic tree calendar.

A lovely spot for a quiet break. There's a large bench, or you can simply sit on the boulders. It always looks a bit "spacey" there 👽

Personally, the term "mammoth forest" seems a bit exaggerated to me, as there are a few isolated redwood trees among the other trees. Nevertheless, the path, which deviates from the usual wide paths on Sophienhöhe, was a nice little change.

This recently reclaimed section of the Sophienhöhe, an artificially created hill on the edge of the open-cast lignite mine, reaches far back into the history of the European continent and the formerly Celtic-influenced civilization. Those interested in the topic can learn a great deal here about the various tree symbols of Celtic culture.

It's beautiful, but seemed a bit overrated to me. There are also a lot of hikers, so it's better to explore on foot.

Large parts of this sandy area still lie fallow today. A wooden tower with a weather vane is set up here, which is modeled on a late medieval winding tower of an ore mine.

The area is a habitat for rare plant and animal species. That is why it is a recognized FFH area and is therefore included in the network of the European Fauna-Flora-Habitat Directive (FFH). 460 ferns and flowering plants have been identified here. 21 species of dragonflies live around the approximately 700 small wet biotopes that were formed through military exercises such as tank trips or entrenchments. 17 different species of grasshoppers and 38 species of butterflies are known to be arthropods. Two further representatives of threatened (FFH) species are the crabs Branchipus schaefferi and Triops cancriformis, which in Germany can be found almost exclusively in the temporary puddles on (former) military training areas.