Ellenbogen (Rhön)

Location of the elbow ( with Schnitzer mountain ) in the Rhön

The elbow is a 813.2 m above sea level. NHN high mountain in the Thuringian Rhön part of volcanic origin. Around 1.5 kilometers to the south is the mountain carving ( 815.5 m above sea level. NHN ) is the highest elevation of the Thuringian Rhön.

At the elbow is the Eisenach house, not far from there is the Thuringian Rhön house. On the mountain carver a transmission tower was built.

Geographical location

The elbow with his crest Schnitzer mountain rises in the district Schmalkalden- Meiningen between the villages Oberweid in the north-northwest, Erbenhausen - Reichenhausen in the northeast and south-southwest in Franconia home; the latter of these three Thuringian villages located a few meters below the mountain plateau near the border triangle Bayern-Hessen -Thüringen. The southeast flank of Mount Schnitzer is located in the district of Rhön - grave field (Bavaria) and its western flank in the district of Fulda (Hessen). Both elbows and Schnitzer mountain located in the Rhön Biosphere Reserve. The edges are in the range of the respective states in the Natural Park and the Bavarian Rhön Rhön.

West of the elbow or north-north- west of the crest of the hill Schnitzer springs the Weid, a southeast tributary of the mountain west in Hesse passing from south to north Ulster. East of the elbow or northeast of the Schnitzer springs mountain in Bavaria, the scattering, a northern tributary of the Franconian Saale.

Hilltop and view option

The high altitude in their little wooded knoll region of the elbow and Schnitzer mountain is a slightly curved Plateau, through which the main road leads to the section 1123 francs Home Reichenhausen as with many Rhön mountains. On the mountain the Eisenach House and the Thuringian Rhön house on the mountain carving a transmission tower and about 700 m, turn west at the elbow of which the peasantry Weidenhof. From the plateau one has a good view of the Hohe Rhön, the Milseburg and the water dome.

Mountain height and side- hill

At the elbow and Schnitzer mountain or in the area of the local three peaks, these are the highest places or hill above the 800 -m contour line - sorted by height in meters above mean sea level ( MSL ) and distances to the top of the mountain carving in kilometers.

• Schnitzer mountain ( 815.5 m; highest mountain in the Thuringian part of the Rhön, one of the three peaks)
• Rear Rhön ( 813.7 m, 0,7 km to the northwest; one of the three peaks)
• Elbow ( 813.2 m, 1.6 km north )
• Nameless hill ( 812 m, 0.3 km south, one of the three peaks)
• Schafküppel ( 806.8 m, 2.1 km north- north-east )

However, the amount is rounded from elbow to 814 m and those specified by carver mountain with 816 meters in most maps. The 800 m high areas of the mountain plateaus rich on the western flank of the mountain carver to Hesse and located below them areas in the southeast, with the siblings hilltops Rhön head and Salkenberg (773 m) to Bavaria.

Eisenach house and Thuringian Rhönhaus

Until the 1920s, was located at the elbow is a simple block house, built by the Rhön club Zweigverein Kaltensundheim and then replaced by a simple stone bench from local basalt stones. Not far away Built in the Rhön club Zweigverein Eisenach 1928, the biggest youth hostel of the Rhön clubs, the Eisenach house.

1945 Rhön club was banned in East Germany and explains the Eisenach House for state property. From 1948 until 1962, there was a vacation home of fdgb and customs. The mid- 1960s established the Stasi in the GDR on the top a monitoring system with four radar towers as a counterpart to the West German system on the water dome and complement similar installations on the Brocken in the Harz Mountains and the whetstone in the Franconian Forest. The data necessary for the operation of the plant technical facilities were housed in Eisenach house that has been extended by a precast production. The mountain plateau received a highly secure fencing and has been declared a prohibited area. On the mountain house was created by mobile news units of the Soviet army camp from low wooden huts, underground bunkers and tents. The exclusion zone around the Eisenach house was henceforth called by the population classified Siberia.

On January 13, 1990, three months after the turn, attracted about 300 residents from surrounding villages before the locked entrance gate at Eisenach house and demanded loudly and persistently intake. After brief negotiations with a major of the NVA delegation took over the building in inspection and convinced of its dilapidated condition. Two days later, the delegation was again called to the mountain house, and her presence under the monitoring system out of service and sealed the technical rooms. After another ten days began with the removal of all technical facilities. At this time, the Soviet soldiers were already deducted.

The Rhön club tried already by the turn on to get the he built Eisenach house back in his possession. However, this prevented the clause in the contract agreement that a return of property that was expropriated between 1945 and 1949 under Soviet military administration is not possible.

The Eisenach house now belongs to the municipality Erbenhausen which it has leased to a hotel operation. It is run as a conference and hiking hotel. The Rhön club has again created a bench - table group of wood at the elbow. The Eckert Bank commemorates the founder of Mountain house.

About 1 km southwest of the Eisenach house or elbow is hidden in the forest, the Thuringian Rhön house (mountain restaurant and inn and a with vivarium ).

Way to the summit

About Elbows and Schnitzer Mountain leads the light coming from the water Kuppenrhön - Rennsteig hiking trail which runs on to Oberhof. At Eisenach house Rhön- altitude road, the Milseburgweg and other local hiking trails and hiking trails meet.