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ofSteven Micksch
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The Taunus continues to attract numerous visitors at the weekend. But chaotic conditions do not occur in ski areas in Hessen.
The subway line 3 in the direction of Oberursel Hohemark is noticeably full on Saturday morning. People with bicycles, skis, sleds and large backpacks sit and stand in the U3 carriages. “The parking lot is already full,” a woman says to her friend when the subway arrives at Hohemark at around 10.30 a.m. Now the passengers pour out of the train and walk towards the forest. The large crowd in the extensive forest area will not appear so huge later.
At the tourist information office, Philipp Melcher and Lina Yarema are still thinking about which route to take. Both came from Frankfurt, and Melcher shouldered a large sled. Now they are looking for a suitable place to toboggan.
I wanted to see the snow here in the Taunus together with my friend. We just had to get out of Frankfurt and go for a walk right now.
© Steven Micksch
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“Maybe we want to go to the fox dance,” says the man from Frankfurt. In the middle of the week they both thought about coming to Oberursel to go sledding on Saturday. “The last time there was snow, we waited too long and regretted it,” says the young man. His companion affirmed: “It’s good to just get out of the city.”
At this point there is no more free parking space in the parking lot next to the Taunus information center. The license plates reveal that people come to the Hohe Mark from far away. Böblingen, Wuppertal, Düren, but also Austria. The majority of the vehicles come from Hessen. Frankfurt, Offenbach, Main-Kinzig-Kreis, Darmstadt. Wherever there is a parking space, a car is quickly available to fill it up again.
A defective parking ticket machine only affects the mood briefly. People look forward to the snow. Some give their still valid parking ticket to the next driver. The police are also on their way and patrolling the car.
I came here by car to go hiking. I come here often because the area is so beautiful. In addition, there is an incline here, so hiking is fun.
© Steven Micksch
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Then it goes up the path to the Hohe Mark Clinic. The sun is shining, it is not as cold as the days before, and there is still snow on the forest floor. Walkers are out and about with their dogs. Others have Nordic walking sticks with them. When the path becomes unpaved, it becomes quite slippery. The path is getting steeper and steeper and people are slowing down.
An older couple comes out of a junction. “We are walking through the beautiful Taunus,” says Angelika Beginé. She and her husband Denis enjoy the snow under a blue sky. The pensioner couple comes from Kronberg and walked straight from the front door towards Taunus. “We are here often, even during the week,” says the man.
Today it is not overly crowded. “The rush on the Feldberg recently, people just wanted to get out,” says Denis Beginé. His wife notes that there has not been such beautiful snow here for a very long time.
The other visitors see it that way too. Small groups make their way up. If you have a sledge with you, you can carry it up the mountain without grumbling. Snow falls softly from the trees when a breeze blows. A trickle is splashing to the left and birds are chirping overhead. In the distance the knocking of a woodpecker can be heard. When they finally reached the first hill, the first take a breather. It’s a bit cooler upstairs. The snow crunches underfoot.
We had to get out of town and now go hiking. We’ve been here in the forest in the summer, but now it’s special with the snow. There is less of that in the city.
© Steven Micksch
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A little further up you can finally hear happy children screaming. The little ones can finally go sledding, and a few adults join in too. “I’m here to have some fun with the kids,” says Florencio Arias Martinez, brushing the snow off his pants. The man from Frankfurt came to the forest with his two daughters. “Yesterday I was here spontaneously, today I have the children with me.” All other options are blocked, but the forest here is very beautiful, and the girls can sledge undisturbed.
As in Oberursel, there is no chaotic rush in other Hessian winter sports areas. “Everything is very quiet here,” says a spokesman for the East Hesse police headquarters about the situation on the Wasserkuppe and the Hoherodskopf. Even if the parking lots were full early on Sunday morning.
The access roads around the Großer Feldberg were closed this weekend. The police reported that there was no big crowd here either. with dpa
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