Baursberg Blankenese

Hamburg's second highest hill, home to a historic 1859 waterworks still supplying the west of the city

The Baursberg in the Hamburg district of Blankenese, at 91.6 m, is the second highest point in the city. On its summit stands the Baursberg Waterworks, built in 1859 and the first filtration plant of its kind in Hamburg. Originally the Elbe's water was treated here; since 1960 only groundwater drawn from depths of up to 320 m has been used. The hill's height is put to clever use: water flows by gravity alone to distant quarters like Othmarschen and even to Schenefeld in Schleswig-Holstein. Since 1990 the wells have been designated Hamburg's first protected water zone.