Highlights of the Harz region

It's 458.5 meters (1,593 ft) long and hangs 100 meters (328 ft) above the river — the pedestrian suspension bridge spanning the Rappbode Dam is the latest tourist attraction in the Harz mountains. Depending on the weather, it sways in the wind, so it takes a bit of courage to cross it.

It takes even more courage to hang in a belt on a cable and hurtle downwards at 90 kilometers an hour. In addition to the mega-zipline, you can try out wall running at Wendenfurth Dam. Event tourism is booming around Rappbode Reservoir.

The wild, romantic countryside is still the main reason for a trip to the Harz. In that sense, little has changed since Goethe's and Heine's times. Both poets visited the region often and immortalized it in their works, which is why you can still follow in their footsteps on trails named after them.

Many hiking trails lead to the summit of the Brocken, at 1,141 meters (3,747 ft) the highest peak in the Harz. On it are a hotel, a weather station and a museum that informs visitors about the division of Germany. The Brocken lay in a restricted military zone. The Stasi, the former East German secret police, maintained a listening post up here that also spied on West German politicians.

Narrow gauge steam trains that could be right out of a picture-book have been taking passengers up the Brocken since 1898. But the nostalgic trip is only worth it when there's good visibility, and that's a rarity up here. Statistically, the Brocken is shrouded in fog 300 days a year.

These ladies don't care about the weather. Legend has it that they gather on the Brocken on Walpurgis Night to revel with the devil. Nowadays, this age-old saga has become a spring festival: every year, witches and devils celebrate Walpurgis Night in many places in the Harz region.

Another saga tells the story of Princess Ilse. As punishment for betraying secrets entrusted to her, she was turned into a river. Since then, she has meandered, constantly babbling and burbling, through the Harz.

About ten percent of the Harz mountain range has been a nature reserve since 2006. The aim is to return the forest to its original pristine state. Deciduous trees such as beech are being planted to reduce the now widespread spruce monocultures.

Hiking trails have also been reduced in the national park in order to create larger zones where wild animals remain undisturbed. You can get quite close to them at two observation stations: the lynx, for instance, which has been successfully reintroduced to the Harz although it was considered extinct in Central Europe for 200 years.

The lion quite rightly represents the town of Goslar. It symbolizes power and might, two attributes that distinguished Goslar in the Middle Ages. The German emperors liked to hold court here, in part because the nearby ore deposits increased their wealth. Goslar's picturesque medieval old town is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Mount Rammelsberg with its mining museum has also been given world heritage status. Its visitors' mine demonstrates the thousand-year history of mining in the Harz region.

Scientists were actually looking for new ore deposits when they came across Baumann's Cave. It's one of many limestone caves in the Harz in which you can admire the stalactites and stalagmites. By the way, the latter are the speleotherms, or cave deposits, that grow upwards.

Half-timbered houses are closely associated with many towns in the Harz, but those in Wernigerode are multi-colored, and it's often referred to as the colorful town in the Harz foothills. Its 15th century town hall is a gem, and tourists to the region love taking pictures of it.