![]() ![]() On the western side, British troops and intelligence services kept an equally close eye on their neighbors, as well as taking advantage of the excellent skiing opportunities in winter. The facilities overlooked a large swath of West Germany and were able to capture much of Western Europe’s radio traffic, playing a key role in Cold War espionage and intelligence gathering activities. At the top, the Brockenhaus includes a hotel, restaurants, a museum and botanical garden, plus many kilometers of hiking trails.īrocken's elevated position on the border of East and West Germany made it ideal of eavesdropping. Rock formations known as “The Devil’s Pulpit” and “Witches’ Altar” are said to have inspired Goethe’s work, but even now the Brocken spectre – an eerie effect caused by shadows cast on the fog – is a common phenomenon on this unusually misty mountain.ĭespite the constant prospect of fog and up to 120 days a year of snow, which occasionally drifts deeper than the height of HSB trains, visitors continue to flock to the summit – at least until services were suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe even featured it in his 1808 play “Faust,” where witches gather on the mountain to celebrate Walpurgis Night. Its dominance of the surrounding landscape has ensured Brocken’s important role in myths and legends over many centuries. Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert/DPA/AFP/Getty Images The wintry conditions on Brocken have played a role in creating myths. Equally, in a Western country, the railway would probably have been closed years before – just as its equivalent on the other side of the border actually was.” “If East Germany had survived for much longer, then diesel locomotives would have replaced the steam. “Its survival is an amazing historical quirk,” says Tony Streeter, HSB expert and former editor of the world’s largest steam magazine, Steam Railway. Today, HSB trains run over 500,000 kilometers (311,000 miles) a year of public services, plus nostalgia specials using vintage trains. Public services restarted in June 2006, with at least two steam-hauled trains a day connecting with the national rail network. In 2005, it took over a five-mile standard gauge line to Quedlinburg, which had been closed by national operator DBAG. While the trend for narrow gauge railways across Europe has been one of contraction and closure since World War II, the HSB network is notable for having actually grown in the 21st century. ![]() KLAUS-DIETMAR GABBERT/DPA/AFP via Getty Images The steam railway carries passengers to the summit of Brocken peak, once the location of a Soviet-era spy station. You might even catch sight of a wild boar running off through the trees after having its lunch interrupted.Īlternatively, head for the UNESCO World Heritage town of Quedlinburg and enjoy a meandering journey through the quiet Selke Valley to Alexisbad or Harzgerode. To get away from the crowds, catch the daily steam train, which winds through the forest from the country junction at Drei Annen Hohne to Nordhausen. But there’s so much more to the HSB than its showpiece mountain line.Īny visitor to the area should make time to explore the underappreciated Harzquerbahn (Trans-Harz Railway) and Selketalbahn (Selke Valley Line). In summer, up to 11 trains a day slog up the mountain from the beautifully restored medieval town of Wernigerode to Brocken. It stands 1,141 meters (3,747 feet) high with a magnificent 360-degree panorama and the chance to visit a former Soviet-era eavesdropping station. The vast majority of those passengers take a spectacular journey up to the region’s highest peak, Brocken. While its rails might be closer together than your average commuter line, this is a “proper” railway with an 140-kilometer (87-mile) network run by professionals to high standards and carrying more than a million passengers every year.īrutish black and red steam locomotives, built in the 1950s and beautifully maintained by HSB engineers, haul trains of traditional balconied carriages packed with hikers and daytrippers into the Harz National Park. If the term “narrow gauge railway” conjures thoughts of a cutesy Thomas the Tank Engine style operation, think again. It’s an integrated part of the region’s transport network. Little known outside Germany, the Harzer Schmalspurbahnen – Harz Narrow Gauge Railways, usually abbreviated to HSB – is one of the few places in the world still operating regular timetabled steam trains throughout the year.Īnd it’s not just for tourists. Deep in the dense green forests of Germany’s Mittelgebirge central mountains lies a remarkable railway that has survived war, political upheaval, Cold War tension and repression, economic hardship and repeated threats of closure. ![]()
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