When we went camping in the black forest, the campsite offered everything we needed. We didn't really have an reason to leave the site. (You can read about camping in the black forest here). But one of the days was outrageously hot and we needed something to take our minds off the heat and be in the shade. We decided to try out what I called the 'Black Forest Staircase'.
This was such a great way to pass a few hours and explore. We loved it!
The views were spectacular!
There is parking at the bottom of the mountain. It's your typical German parking lot, so bring euro to pay for your parking when you exit. Beside the parking lot is a restaurant and bike shop. We didn't eat at the restaurant, but there are public restrooms there. At the bike shop, there were drinks and ice cream. But the cool thing is, there were guided mountain biking tours and routes. These people were serious bikers and had all the gear you needed: bikes, protection, etc. If you are an extreme mountain biker, I suggest going to this place for some challenging trails.
From here, to the right of this picture, is the entrance to the mountain. You have an easy hike to get to the wooden staircase. Along the hike, you'll come across the entrance to the wooden staircase. It's really called the "Baumwipfelpfad".
I think we paid around 30 euro for a family pass (2 adults and 2 kids) and 4 euro for each of our 2 kids to ride the slide on the way down.(more info and pictures of the slide throughout this page...keep reading). After you pay to get in, there is additional walking to get to the actual staircase.
Along the walk, there is an option to have a little more fun getting to the staircase. It's a kid friendly obstacle course.
It was completely safe and we all loved it, adults included. If you didn't want to take the obstacle way, there were parallel paths that were flat. So, if you had a stroller or someone that needed assistance, you did not have to take the route we did.
There is an awesome slide that takes you from the top of the staircase to the bottom. This was an added incentive for our kids to get to the top since, they wouldn't have to walk back down.
After the easy hike to get through the black forest, you will come to a clearing and can get a good look at the staircase.
There is also a clearing with some free hand outs, brochures and info on additional hiking trails in the area.
Then, you start climbing. Although I call this the Black Forest Staircase, it's actually a very gradual ramp. There were not a lot of people there and lots of room, so you never had to turn sideways to get around people you encountered while waking the ramp. It was so gradual, that it required little effort.
The end result was breathtaking views.
To get back down the staircase you can either walk down, or take the slide (remember you have to prepay for the slide when you buy your entrance tickets).
This was SO much fun. It was a long ride down, and I screamed the entire time. It was great. One thing that is good to know, is each person has to go by themselves. So, if you have a little one with you-you will NOT be able to go down the slide with them in your lap. There is an attendant at the top of the slide that takes your ticket, which states you prepaid for the slide. The attendant helps each person get onto a sliding mat and then, off you go!
At the bottom of the slide, there are free restrooms and a little gift shop.
This was totally worth it and a great way to pass some hours on a hot day.
Things to know:
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