June 14, 2025, 12:11 pm | Read time: 8 minutes
Few other once-popular nature reserves have received as much negative press in recent years as the Harz National Park. Admittedly, drought and an unprecedented bark beetle infestation have wreaked havoc here. However, our author has been hiking in the area for years and consistently sees encouraging signs that the fragile ecosystem is well on its way to recovery. Even now, there is still much beauty to discover.
I’ve been walking up a winding forest road for what feels like an eternity, and for hours I’ve been presented with a view that, under different circumstances, might discourage me or even make me abandon my tour. I’m in the middle of nowhere in the Harz National Park, surrounded by brown, withered tree corpses on all the slopes and hills. Where dense spruce forests once stood, you could easily film a dystopian disaster movie today. But that’s just one side of the truth, and instead of feeling disheartened, my heart beats faster at this sight. A new chapter in the history of this unique nature reserve has already begun–anyone who sees this area with their heart, as I do, will easily recognize it.
Overview
All along the path, young firs are already towering over a man’s height, and young birches, beeches, oaks, and alders are reaching for the sun. In some areas of the Harz National Park, humans have not intervened for decades, and a healthy mixed forest is slowly but surely re-emerging, which still adorns other parts of the Harz. But how did it come to this, that the region around the 1,142-meter-high Brocken mountain repeatedly makes headlines like “The Harz is Dying”? Accompanied by shocking images that would likely deter anyone not well-informed from vacationing here. Well, to explain this, we need to go back a few centuries.
Vulnerable Monocultures
In earlier times, the Harz was an area where both mining and charcoal burning were heavily practiced. Both industries required vast amounts of wood to keep the smelting and burning furnaces running. Once the native mixed forests were cleared, spruce, a fast-growing tree promising quick wood, was planted extensively. However, such monocultures are much more susceptible to diseases and pests like the bark beetle. This beetle can actually smell sick trees and targets them, then blindly spreads to neighboring populations. Add to that several years of insufficient rainfall, and you have an ecosystem on the brink of collapse. Fortunately, nature is already preparing a new, more resilient one.
Martin Baumgartner, spokesperson for Harz National Park, told TRAVELBOOK: “A forest transformation is taking place here. Where there were once monocultures, almost plantations, a natural, wild, diverse forest is growing again.” The human contribution mainly consists of non-intervention. Only in this way can the natural development process be protected. Already today, 75 percent of the protected area is no longer interfered with. Of course, exceptions are made for protective measures and the maintenance of paths and roads, such as removing fallen trees.
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Goethe Was Here Too
I’ve regularly and gladly roamed through this wonderfully untouched nature in recent years. Anyone who avoided visiting Harz National Park due to its supposed current state missed a beautiful and diverse region. A tour can start in the fairy-tale town of Ilsenburg, from where you initially follow the rushing Ilse River into the higher elevations of the park. If you’re attentive, you might spot fascinating fire salamanders along the way. Ilsenburg is also one of the most popular starting points for climbing the Brocken and offers numerous dining and accommodation options for hikers planning to stay several days.
Of course, climbing the highest mountain in the region, the Brocken, is almost a must when visiting Harz National Park. The poet Goethe honored this majesty three times starting in 1777. He also set an important chapter of his immortal classic “Faust” here, where witches dance on the summit during Walpurgis Night. Naturally, a hiking trail in the Harz is named after Goethe. Almost every place he visited, even for just five minutes, proudly bears his name. The ascents to the Brocken vary significantly in difficulty and length. But it’s worth it, as on clear days, according to the local national park house’s website, you can see up to 200 kilometers.
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Additionally, there’s an old DDR listening station open to visitors at the top. There are also numerous opportunities to stock up on provisions for the return journey. Those who don’t want to hike up can take the partially steam-powered Brocken Railway to the summit. Coming from Wernigerode, the romantic train winds its way up through curves and ascents. As a hiker, you can often hear the tender’s whistle from afar. This service is thanks to the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways (HSB), which maintain an extensive network of routes, especially between smaller towns throughout the Harz. Holders of the Germany ticket can even use this network for free. However, those wishing to go up or down the Brocken must pay from or to the Drei Annen Hohne station.
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Hiking Through German History
A hike through Harz National Park is also a journey through our country’s history. Until reunification, the inner-German border ran right through the nature reserve. This is particularly impressive at the Ecker Dam, where you can still see the old DDR border markings on the wall. The demarcation line ran right through the reservoir back then. According to Baumgartner, the national park itself consisted of two parts until 2006, which were only merged then. In the small town of Torfhaus, the past is still palpable today. “In the past, West Germans drove right up to the border here to get a glimpse into the East,” a staff member at the local national park center told me during my visit. Today, you can look out over the vast lands from the 65-meter-high Harz Tower and visit a several-thousand-year-old peat bog. And you can strengthen yourself for a tour in one of the snack bars and/or restaurants.
There are numerous beautifully located inns to hike to in Harz National Park. One is the Plessenburg Forest Inn high above Ilsenburg, which has existed since 1776. Solid cuisine at good prices, and if you’re lucky, you might witness a wildlife feeding. You can also observe this from December to April at the Molkenhaus, located in the middle of the forest near the Ecker Dam. The menu here is very limited, but the location itself, with a large sun terrace and fireplace for winter, is very inviting. It gets more spectacular at the Rabenklippe Inn, located high above the valley on a rock of the same name. Hearty home cooking, an outstanding view, and with a bit of luck, you can observe three lynxes in an adjacent enclosure.
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“Learning More Patience Again”
It’s surreal when a bus suddenly rushes past you on a forest path. But indeed, several lines operate in the vast Harz National Park. They can take you to various rest stops or back to your accommodation if your feet are tired. You can reach the aforementioned Molkenhaus this way, for example. The higher elevations of the nature reserve, such as the Scharfenstein Cliff or the Taubenklippe, offer stunning views. For you, dear readers, I hope you can soon enjoy one of these panoramas with your own eyes. And not just see what seems to be current, but also have an eye for what will hopefully soon be again in Harz National Park.
“In terms of nature conservation, you have to think more long-term than when planning a vacation for next year,” says Baumgartner. “We humans need to learn more patience in dealing with nature. And accept that some things can’t change overnight.” In Harz National Park, they want to make nature accessible to everyone and show them why it’s so important to protect it. Of course, there are areas here that people shouldn’t enter. But: “Hiking and recreation will always be possible here.”