Guest article: Hans-Jürgen rolls
An adventure around Albstadt in the Swabian Alb

Hello everyone,

I recently had the opportunity to test a towing device, so what could be better than trying it out on the spot? I would therefore like to invite you to join me on a tour of the beautiful Swabian Alb region, which will take us through various districts of Albstadt and end in what I think will be an impressive finale. Are you ready for a little mental break? Then you can start right away ...

But let's start from the beginning... After the installation and a comprehensive briefing, it was time to carefully familiarize ourselves with the new technology in the center of Albstadt - Ebingen.

There, right at the start of the tour, the townscape-defining Bürgerturm tower came into view, a preserved remnant of the former town fortifications, as the other parts were removed over time to fill in the ditches around the town at the time. This tower was built around 1500 and at that time also served as a prison to punish the "misdemeanors" of the citizens of Ebing. Today, this building houses the German Alpine Association.

Not far away is Ebingen's town hall, a building that is particularly eye-catching with its massive gable and numerous decorative elements. It was built between 1912 and 1913 in a reform style with Art Nouveau elements according to the plans of Stuttgart architect Martin Elsässer, whereby the current appearance is based on the influences of the town architect of the time.

On this tour, two other buildings catch the eye, the so-called "Martinsfruchtkasten", which dates back to 1584 and used to serve as a tithe barn for spelt. From 1900, the building also served as a home economics school, which was located there until the 1960s. It was then used by the Academy of Crafts until recently, as the lettering still reminds us. No less interesting is the neighboring building, which also dates back to the second half of the 15th century, the "Herrschaftliche Fruchtkasten". A former granary used by the Württemberg authorities, it now houses the "Museum im Kräuterkasten".

This was followed by a longer stage that led us to the district of Margrethausen, to another historical monument with a very eventful history - namely the former Franciscan convent. According to the chronicles, a collection of nuns was first established here in 1298 and the convent was later founded by the local lord Konrad von Tierburg in 1338 and established the following year. The Thirty Years' War caused severe damage to the ensemble, but in 1707 the church was rebuilt and with the consecration of the new convent building, convent life was able to continue.

Over the course of time, the building underwent various alterations and after secularization, the convent church and the south wing were also removed. The convent was finally dissolved in 1811 and after the last nuns left, the history of the second oldest monument in Albstadt was gradually forgotten. After being used as a school for many years, the premises are now used by the local authority, the fire department and various associations, as well as to a lesser extent by the church itself.

Lautlingen, also a district of Albstadt, is home to another building of historical significance - Stauffenberg Castle. This building, which dates back to the Middle Ages, has been the family seat of the Lords of Stauffenberg since 1625. The resistance fighters Bertold and Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg spent most of their childhood and youth there from 1918, and in 1943 it also served as a place of recuperation for Count Claus after his war injury. The castle has been owned by the town of Albstadt since the 1970s and has housed a permanent exhibition since 2007, which documents the life and career of Carl von Stauffenberg up to the resistance against Hitler in detail.

On a tour of the spacious castle grounds, the other buildings round off the extremely well-kept impression of this memorial site. A glance through an archway in the castle wall reveals the next destination - the Roman Catholic parish church of St. John the Baptist. Today's hall church was built in 1912 / 1913 to replace the village church, which had been severely damaged by an earthquake, and the flank tower from 1725 was integrated into the new construction. If you look closely, you can also see the Stauffenberg memorial chapel on the right-hand side of the picture, which was built to commemorate the events of 20 July 1944.

Shortly before leaving the district, I passed another impressive eye-catcher - the Lautlingen Viaduct of the Zollernalbbahn, which was built from local limestone between 1875 and 1878. The Lautlingen Viaduct is the second largest railroad bridge in Württemberg and also one of the last stone arch bridges of its kind built before the change to iron and concrete. In this respect, it also represents a cultural monument in many respects, the preservation of which is in the public interest.

In the meantime, my tour had reached Ebingen again and I continued my little tour of the town, which began with the historic Persiluhr clock in Sonnenstraße, whose striking appearance is reminiscent of the advertising of a bygone era.

Just a little later, I caught a glimpse of St. Martin's Church, which was given its current appearance when the large nave was rebuilt in Art Nouveau style between 1906 and 1907. A few more turns of the bike and we reached the Obere Vorstadt, where a very extravagant bronze sculpture - called Vogel Strauß - created by Miriam Lenk and her father dominates the square. Looking at it from the opposite direction, I could well imagine that this figure caused some discussion when it was erected.

A tour of the town should not fail to mention Ludwig Spanagel, whose life-size bronze statue in Marktstraße commemorates the Ebingen original.Ludwig Spanagel lived from 1845 to 1918 and originally learned the shoemaker's trade and was appointed town crier in 1884, whereby the goose, which always waddled behind him, sometimes enjoyed a higher level of attention and always commented on his exclamations with a cackle.

After another look at the town hall from a different perspective, the representative commercial building of the merchant Paul Gminder in Bahnhofstraße concludes the historical tour through Ebingen. The figure on the top of the gable is interesting, as it shows Hermes, the messenger of the gods, standing with one foot on the globe with a helmet and staff, the god of trade.

Leaving the town center meant a change of scenery and the Swabian Alb showed itself from its best side at the beginning, because after just a short distance I had my first distant view of Truchtelfingen and only a little later the Schönhalden rocks offered an interesting motif and many more followed.

Completely relaxed, the traction device pulled me up to higher and higher altitudes and the spectacular views repeatedly demanded a brief pause, accompanied by a noticeable deceleration. On well-maintained paths, the rest of the route was - in my opinion - a constant feast for the eyes; I think the pictures speak for themselves. The rainfall of the last few days did contribute to a rustic outfit due to the soaked paths, but clothes can be washed - but the beauty of this region will stay with you for a long time.

Then the first stopover on the way to the finale was reached, the 956 m Raichberg near Albstadt - Onstmettingen, which is also an ideal starting point for hikes. The "Nägelehaus" hiking lodge and the Raichberg tower, both of which belong to the Swabian Alb Association, can also be found there. The tower even offers a view as far as the Alps, weather permitting.

But now came the final stage to the somewhat lower 913m high Zeller Horn, which offers a magnificent panoramic view of Hohenzollern Castle and the Alb foreland. It is not without reason that the Zeller Horn is considered one of the most beautiful vantage points in this region and is, in my opinion, a must for every nature lover. I also found it hard to resist this fascination and enjoyed the various views in different directions, which also found their way into the gallery. At the same time, I was particularly pleased that modern technology also enables wheelchair users to enjoy this experience. Finally, a picture of the almost fairytale-like Hohenzollern Castle as a worthy finale to this tour, which will once again take center stage, but that will be another story ...

With this in mind, stay healthy and happy and enjoy life as often as you can.

See you soon
Hans - Jürgen

We also say: thank you, dear Hans-Jürgen, for visiting us and taking this exciting tour with us - your AAT team