Blauen

Hochblauen, at 1,165 metres the landmark summit of the Markgräflerland region on the southern Black Forest's western edge, rises steeply above the Upper Rhine plain. Its summit geology is composed of Lower Carboniferous Malsburg granite and gneiss, among the oldest rock formations in the Black Forest. The nearby spa town of Badenweiler sits just three kilometres to the north, and a paved road makes the summit accessible without hiking boots. On clear days the panorama stretches across the Rhine plain to the Vosges mountains in France and, in exceptional conditions, to the Alps. Hiking trails of varying difficulty connect the summit to the surrounding municipalities of Schliengen, Malsburg-Marzell, and Badenweiler.