Kellerwald-Edersee National Park (also know as Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee in German) is
a 57.4 km²
park located in the northwestern part of Hesse, in Germany. The National Park was created in 2004 and since the beech forested area of the national park has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, part of the site known as Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and the Ancient Beech Forests of Germany.
How do I arrive to Kellerwald-Edersee National Park?
Kellerwald-Edersee National Park is close to Kassel so it's quite well connected.
- Train: the main entrance to the National Park is via Bad Wildingen, that can be reached easily
from places such as Fritzlar (aprox. 15 minutes) or Kassel (aprox. 1 hour 10 minutes). Korbach is connected by train with Bad Arolsen (aprox. 15 minutes), Frankenberg an der Eder (aprox. 40 minutes) and Wetter (aprox. 1 hour 5 minutes).
- Bus:
there are buses from Bad Wildungen to Kassel (aprox. 1 hour 15 minutes), stopping in towns like Fritzlar, and to Frankenberg (Eder).
- Car: the main entrance to the National Park is via Bad Wildingen, that can be reached easily
from places such as Fritzlar (aprox. 15 minutes), Kassel and Melsungen (aprox. 35 minutes), Wolfhagen and Bad Arolsen (aprox. 40 minutes), Marburg (aprox. 50 minutes), Bad Hersfeld (aprox. 55 minutes), Alsfeld (aprox. 1 hour), Gießen (aprox. 1 hour 5 minutes) or Fulda (aprox. 1 hour 15 minutes). Once there it can be reached places in the National Park or around such as Edertal (aprox. 10 minutes), Bad Zwesten (aprox. 15 minutes), Waldeck (aprox. 20 minutes), Frankenberg an der Eder and Vöhl (aprox. 30 minutes) or Korbach (aprox. 40 minutes).
Once
in the Park the best ways to move around the park are the car, bike or simply hiking.
History
The area was mainly part of the County of Waldeck (later the Principality of Waldeck and Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont), a state of the Holy Roman Empire and its successors from the late 12th century until 1929. In 1349 the county gained Imperial immediacy and in 1712 was raised to the rank of Principality. After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 it was a constituent state of its successors: first the Confederation of the Rhine and the German Confederation, then the North German Confederation and finally the German Empire, being until 1929 part of the Weimar Republic. It comprised territories in present-day Hesse and Lower Saxony and its capital was Waldeck (until 1655) and Arolsen (from 1655) and it 1929 it was incorporated into the Free State of Prussia and became part of the province of Hesse-Nassau. Between 1908 and 1914 the barrier wall of the Edersee was built and during the flooding, the villages of Asel, Berich and Bringhausen disappeared. On the night of May 17, 1943, a British rotation bomb destroyed the barrier wall and triggered a 6-8 m high tidal wave through the lower Eder and Fulda valleys (hundreds of houses, factories, railroad lines, roads, bridges and trees were destroyed or washed away).
Hesse's only national park is in the Kellerwald south of the Edersee, created to protect the red beech forest, which is characteristic of this region (some areas in the park have beech trees that are over 100 years old). The national park was founded on January 1st, 2004. In 2012 it was clearly recognized that the forest had been withdrawn from forest use for eight years (the removal of the non-native tree species was largely completed) and since June 25, 2011 the protected area has been able to adorn itself with the prestigious title of World Natural Heritage by UNESCO.
What can I visit in Kellerwald-Edersee National Park?
Kellerwald-Edersee National Park is quite popular among people who like taking trails, renting boats or simply enjoying nature, having beautiful towns too. Now it will be explained what to do in the park according to
the town or village where they are or the nearest one:
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- Driving south from Korbach the visitor reaches one of the entrances to Kellerwald-Edersee National Park, Vöhl (5,552 inhabitants). This town is a perfect base to discover the national park but it has also other things to offer when having a walk there. It can be seen Vöhl Synagogue (on request), a synagogue from 1827 that survived the years of Nazism and now is used for cultural events; the Lutheran Martinskirche, that was first built in the Romanesque period, or the Hessian Forestry Office in Vöhl (located in a building built around 1386 as a farm for the first Vöhler castle, the becoming a manorial dairy farm).
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Walbeck Palace
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Continuing next to Edersee it can be found Waldeck (6,742 inhabitants), a town that was the residence of the Counts of Waldeck (until 1655) who gradually gathered a sizeable realm under their control (elevated to Princes of Waldeck-Pyrmont in 1712). Here it can be visited Walbeck Palace (10-18 from Apr to Oct; 12-16 Sun from Nov to Mar; 5€/ 3€ adults/ kids under 16), a Schloss on the remnants of an 11th century fortification, towering over the town of Waldeck, that was the ancestral seat and residence of the Counts of Waldeck. Since 1734 it was a state penitentiary and in subsequent years was used as state archive, forestry office and in 1906 a hotel. The town has also a nice beach, Edersee Bathing Beach. Not far from Walbeck it can be found Kahle Haardt,  |
Edersee
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a mountain located on the Scheid peninsula that provides one of the most beautiful views of the Ederse (seeing the reservoir and the cellar forest opposite). It is also known for its ancient gnarly forest. A bit further can be found the Ruins of Ober Werbe Monastery, remains of a Romanesque building from the 12th century (that ceased to be a monastery when the Reformation reached Hesse and whose decline began after the Thirty Years War) that offers a wide view of the village and the surrounding area.
- There's a long route for bikes, Edersee Bicylce Route (46.8 km), that goes along the perimenter of Edersee. This reservoir is the core of the national park, being the 2nd largest area and the 3rd largest volume in Germany, and is located on Eder river, a tributary of river Fulda.
- Edertal (6,210 inhabitants): town by river Eder that is located in the south shore of the Edersee and its dam.
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| Edersee Dam |
The Crazy House Edersee (10-19 Tue-Sun from Apr to Oct; 11-16 Sat-Sun from Nov to Mar; 5€/ 3.50€/ free adults/ kids under 14/ kids under 7): completely upside-down detached house that results in some interesting photo motifs against gravity. - Edersee Dam: hydroelectric dam spanning the river Ederthat
was constructed between 1908 and 1914. Today it generates hydroelectric
power and regulates water levels for shipping on the Weser river. At low water in late summers of dry years the remnants of three villages (Asel, Bringhausen, and Berich) and a bridge across the original river bed can be seen, Asel Bridge.
- Sperrmauer Museum (11-17 from Apr to Oct; free): small
museum in the former village of Hemfurth that commemorates the attack on
the dam wall in World War II under the Operation Chastise (was intended
to seriously affect the power supply of the Third Reich) and the
reconstruction of the barrier wall too.
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TreeTopWalk
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- Edersee Wildlife Park (9-18): spacious
wildlife park shows the animals in natural enclosures (including red
deer, fallow deer, mouflon, bison, wolves, lynxes, ibexes, otters and
wild horses). There is a petting zoo for children and it will be loved
by them
- TreeTopWalk (10-18 from Apr to Oct; 8.50€/ 4.50€/ free adults/ people under 18/ kids under 4): 230 m long treetop path through the crowns of the beech forest above the Edersee. The highlight of the route is the panorama platform with a view of the lake.
- From the town depart some routes such as Affolderner See Trail (12.7 km), a moderate round trail that goes along the perimeter of Affoldener See, considered an important bird sanctuary and used
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Affoldener See
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as a fishing area too, and crossing Edersee dam and going next to Peterskopfbahn (funicular railway that overcomes in 10 minutes an altitude difference of 290 m); or Goldgräberpfad Trail (9.7 km)
- Next to the last mentioned trail it can be visited the former village of Kleinern, currently part of Edertal. It can be seen Kleinern Lutheran Church, a Baroque church from 1681 that has a linden wood altar with tempera painting built before the Reformation (1521), and Kleinern Dorfbrunnen, octagonal fountain from 1904 that has medicinal water.
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Views from Quernst Chapel
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- In the southwestern part of the park it can be found Frankenau (2,902 inhabitants). From here it can be the side of the national park that has the best forests and taking some of the most interesting trails. Some of them are Elsebach Round Trail (5.8 km), route by river Elsebach, Fahrentriesch Round Trail (8.2 km), Harbshausen Round Trail (11.1 km), Ringelsberg Round Trail (11.4 km) or Hochspeicherbecken Eder Trail (17.4 km), the most difficult one of among the previously mentioned. Going to Quernst Chapel, newly built wooden chapel from where there is a beautiful vantage point with a view of the Rothaar Mountains, where it can be seen the foundation walls of the former church too.
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Bad Wildungen
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- Bad Wildungen: 17,264 inhabitants spa town, part of the German Timber-Frame Road, that is a historic half-timbered town on a hilltop with a nice Marktplatz. The town was one of the seats of the County (and then Principality) of Waldeck. Here it's located Kellerwald-Edersee National Park Administration (10-18 from Apr to Oct; 10-16:30 Thu-Sun from Nov to Mar).
- St. Nikolaus Lutheran Church in Bad Wildungen: late-Gothic church from the 14th century that has a tower which dominates the townscape. The most outstanding piece in the church is an impressing altarpiece from 1404 by Conrad von Soest, Wildunger Altar, an important work of German panel painting.
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Interior of St. Nikolaus Lutheran
Church in Bad Wildungen
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The church hosts the tombs of the Counts of Waldeck-Wildungen (like the Renaissance tomb of Count Samuel von Waldeck or the Baroque tombs of Count Josias II von Waldeck and Prince Karl August Friedrich von Waldeck). At the entrance there's a rose bush commemorating the victims of the witch trials (around 79 people). - Bad Wildungen Town Museum (14-17 Tue-Wed and Sat-Sun): museum that deals the history of the town but also the regional prehistory, specially focused in the Ice and Stone Ages.
- Friedrichstein Palace
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Friedrischstein Palace
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(10-17 Tue-Sun from Apr to Oct; 10-17 Fri-Sun from Nov to Mar; 3€/ 2€/ free adults/ reduced/ people under 18): Baroque Schloss, located on a hill opposite the old town, with a bright yellow façade, originally built as a Gothic castle by Count Josias II von Waldeck. It was replaced the current palace in the mid-17th century but its rich interior was lost when the royal family moved to the palace in Bad Arolsen in the beginning of the 18th century. It keeps the splendid stucco work by Andreas Gallasini and the ceiling paintings by Carlo Caselli. Now it hosts a extensive collection of the Hessian military and hunting history of the Hessian  |
Halloh Pastoral Forest
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State Museum in Kassel. - Bad Wildungen Kurpark: spa park, whose the complex is the largest spa park in Europe (50 hectares) and stretches with the near-natural green bridge over a wooded valley up to the Reinhardshausen district. In the park there is the Wandelhalle, home of the mineral bath QuellenTherme.
- Halloh Pastoral Forest: 3.4 hectare forest monument (just 1 km southwest of the village of Albertshausen) that can only be reached on foot or by bike.
- In the way between Bad Wildungen and Bad Zwesten the visitor can stop a bit at Braunau Lutheran Church, a church located in Braunau district of Bad Wildungen that dates back to 1728. Its west tower is crowned with a hood and a lantern.
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Bad Zwesten
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Bad Zwesten: 3,813 inhabitants spa town with a mineral spring that makes it popular among spa-lovers.
- Bad Zwesten Lutheran Church: fortified church with origin in the 15th century that has a nice tower with loopholes and parts of it have a defensive wall, with loopholes too.
- Bad Zwesten Town Museum (15-16:30 first Thu and thrid Sun of the month): small museum that exhibits the local history and life and living in the old days. It hosts temporary exhibitions too.
- Bad Zwesten Kurpark am Kurhaus: relaxed spa park that is nice to have a walk in sound adventure park, a rose garden, various ponds and a bowling green.
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Zwesten Palace
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- Zwesten Palace: two-storey Schloss erected in 1782 for Wilhelm Treusch von Buttlar (Hesse-Kassel head hunter) in Neoclassical style, made of plastered half-timbering. Today both the castle and the Kavaliershaus are privately owned (in the Kavaliershaus there is a hotel with a spa)..
- Ruins of Löwenstein Castle: remains of a Burg built in the 13th century by Wernher von Bischoffshausen, later belonging to Löwenstein family, an important player in Hesse politics (having non-aggression pacts with the Landgrave of Thuringia and the Counts of Waldeck). The castle was transformed into a Schloss in the 17th century (although abandoned a century later) and today it remain a renovated tower.
- A good choice to spend time in the town is talking Bad Zwesten Round Trail
(7.5 km), a trail that visits the most important sights in the town.
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Haina Monastery
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- Going 15 km west, towards Frankenberg, it can be found Haina (Kloster), a 3,444 inhabitants town that is known because of Haina Monastery (11-17 Tue-Sun from Apr to Oct), a former Cistercian monastery built in the 13th and 14th century in Gothic style (one of the earliest buildings in Germany in this style). The monastery was dissolved in 1527 by Landgrave Philip I when the Reformation took place, turning the facility into a hospital (today a psychiatric clinic is located on the monastery grounds). It also has a English style garden.
- Frankenberg an der Eder: 17,689 inhabitants town on Eder River that used to be a fort (especially important under the Franks in the Saxon Wars),
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Town Hall of
Frankenberg an der Eder
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being a founded as a town by the Thuringian Landgrave in the 13th century. It have many half-timbered houses and has a very beautiful square, Obermarkt.- Town Hall of Frankenberg an der Eder: half-timbered town hall built between 1509 and 1513, known as the town's landmark. It has 10 towers, that stand for the 10 guilds that used to exist in Frankenberg, and the front is decorated with three piggyback figures in the 16th century.
- Liebfrauenkirche: three-aisled Lutheran church in Gothic style whose construction started in 1286 on the model of the Elisabethkirche in Marburg. It suffered a fire in 1478 and was rebuilt under Landgrave Heinrich III, transformed into a Protestant church after the Reformation.
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| Liebfrauenkirche |
Its most spectacular part is Marienkapelle des Tyle, that has a stone high altar wall completed around 1380.
- Frankfenberg Town Museum (14-17 Wed and 13-17 Sun): museum about the local history that is located in a former Cistercian monastery, St. Georgenberg Monastery, whose structure of which dates from the 13th to 17th centuries.
- Thonet Museum (9-17 Mon-Fri, 14-16 Sat; free): museum of the company of furniture designer and manufacturer Michael Thonet that shows historical furniture that has been produced in Frankenberg since 1889.
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Arolsen Palace
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Around the National Park it can be visited many interesting towns that are worth a visit. Exploring the north of Hesse it can be found the town of Bad Arolsen
(15,382 inhabitants), a spa town in the north of Hesse that was the residence town of the Princes of Waldeck-Pyrmont (from 1655 until 1918) and the capital of the Waldeck Free State (until 1929). The International Tracing Service has its headquarters in Bad Arolsen too. Bad Arolsen has a cute Baroque style Alstadt, mainly located around Große Allee. The main sightseeing point is Arolsen Palace (10-17 Fri-Sun; 8€/ 7€ adults/ reduced), a Baroque style Schloss that was built during the early 18th century. The palace keeps a good 18th century library and original furniture. It was the birthplace of Princess Emma of Waldeck and Pyrmont (who became Queen consort of the Netherlands during the late 19th century). It's still inhabited by the Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont and his family and works as a museum about the history of Bad Arolsen too. It also has a nice English style garden. On the outskirts of the town there's the reservoir Twistesee. |
Marktplatz, Wolfhagen Old Town Hall and
Wolfhagen Lutheran Church
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Driving 15 km from Bad Arolsen and 23 km west of Kassel the visitor reaches Wolfhagen, a 13,022 inhabitants town on the German Timber-Frame Road. It has a lovely old town with half-timbered buildings and smaller remains of the town wall. The most beautiful urban space is the cozy Marktplatz, a square where it's located Wolfhagen Old Town Hall (today a hotel and a restaurant), and a fountain that shows a scene from the fairy tale The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats. The most important church in the town is Wolfhagen Lutheran Church (8-18 from Apr to Oct; 9-17 from Nov to Mar), a Gothic church from the 14th century that includes other styles with parts that are worth to see such as the nice choir windows from 1691, glass windows by Hans-Gottfried von Stockhausen and the west portal on the tower. Another interesting place is Wolfhagen Castle, a partially lost Burg founded in the 13th century by Konrad von Thuringia that was demolished in the 17th century. Currently the nearby building hosts Wolfhagen Regional Museum (10-13 and 14-17 Tue, 14-17 Sat-Sun; 3€), a museum that provides information about the history of the town and region. Other things to visit in Wolfhagen are Ruins of Helfenberg Castle (abandoned Burg that was built by the brothers Heinrich and Eberhard II von Gasterfeld in the early 13th century, whose descendants called themselves Herren von Helfenberg, destroyed in that century) or the modern St. Maria Catholic Church.
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Marktplatz, Fritzlar Old Town
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In the east of the national park, not far from Bad Wildungen, it can be reached Fritzlar, a 14,733 inhabitants town with historical importance. The town has a half-timbered old town, including a Marktplatz with beautiful buildings, that is ringed by a wall with numerous watch towers. The landmark of its Alstadt is St. Peter Catholic Church (9-17 Mon-Fri, 9-16 Sat, 12-16 Sun; free), a Dom with a mixture of Romanesque and Gothic styles (although the external appearance is completely Romanesque) whose construction began in the 11th century. It was first built by Boniface around 723, continued in 732 under Wigbert that were destroyed by the forces of Rudolf of Rheinfelden in 1079 during his confrontation with Emperor Heinrich IV. It can also be visited the remnants of the city wall, still largely preserved, such as the Graue Tower (10-12 and 14-17 from Apr to Oct; 2€), a grey defensive tower that can be climbed as a viewing tower, or Greben Tower. The town has the oldest officially mentioned and still used town hall in Germany, Fritzlar Town Hall, dating back to 1109. To get to know deeper the town, particulary to know the isolation it suffered for being Catholic (because it was controlled by the archbishopric of Mainz) it can be visited Fritzlar Regional Museum (15-17 Mon, Thu-Fri; 2€), a museum that shows the history of Fritzlar from prehistory and early history and its folklore placed in the Hochzeitshaus (a stately half-timbered building from around 1580-1590, one of the largest half-timbered houses in Hesse from this period).
Where can I eat in Kellerwald-Edersee National Park?
The culinary offer of the park is diverse isn't very large but the visitor can eat at places like Zum Waldbölker (Edertal) or Hofcafé am Nationalpark (Gellershäuser Straße 12, Bad Wildungen). Other choices in Bad Wildungen are the German restaurant Koppenretscher Wirt (Vor der Linde 12-14a) or the Hessian restaurant Waffelhaus (Bilsteinstraße 67). The best ideas to eat in Frankenberg (Eder) are Cafe Nostalgie (Neustädter Straße 50), the bakery Eckhardt (Bottendorfer Straße 49) or the traditional Gasthaus Vöhl (Neustädter Straße 20).
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Banknotemaniac
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