The Harz is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name Harz derives from the Middle High German word Hardt or Hart. The name Hercynia derives from a Celtic name and could refer to other mountain forests, but has also been applied to the geology of the Harz. The Brocken is the highest summit in the Harz with an elevation of 1,141.1 metres (3,744 ft) above sea level. The Wurmberg is the highest peak located entirely within the state of Lower Saxony.
Gernrode is a historic town and former municipality in the Harz District, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2014, it has been part of Quedlinburg. It was the seat of the former Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Gernrode/Harz.
The Selke Valley Railway (Selketalbahn), Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway and the Anhalt Harz Railway were different names for the metre gauge railway in the Lower Harz, Germany, originally owned by the Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway Company.
Thale is a town in the Harz district in Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany. Located at the steep northeastern rim of the Harz mountain range, it is known for the scenic Bode Gorge stretching above the town centre.
Osterode am Harz, often simply called Osterode, is a town in south-eastern Niedersachsen on the south-western edge of the Harz mountains. It was the seat of government of the district of Osterode. Osterode is located on the German Timber-Frame Road.
The Harz Narrow Gauge Railways is a railway company that operates a 1,000 mmmetre gauge network in the Harz mountains, in central Germany. The company was formed after the Second World War as a merger of two earlier companies. It owns about 140 kilometres of track, connecting the principal towns of Wernigerode, Nordhausen and Quedlinburg and several smaller settlements in the area. Much of the network is steeply graded and picturesque, but its most popular destination is the Brocken, the highest mountain in the region. The company runs a significant number of its trains with steam haulage, mostly employing 1950s vintage 2-10-2 tank locomotives, hauling traditional open-platform bogie carriages. The company is mainly owned by the various local authorities whose territories it serves.
Elbingerode is an Ortsteil of Oberharz am Brocken in the Harz district, in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. The former town was incorporated into the newly established municipality on 1 January 2010.
Benneckenstein is a town in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it has been part of the town of Oberharz am Brocken. Benneckenstein is in the eastern Harz, 14 km southeast of Braunlage, and 24 km south of Wernigerode.
Hasselfelde is a town in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated in the eastern Harz, approximately 17 km south of Wernigerode. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Oberharz am Brocken. As of 1 January 2010 Hasselfelde has 2,390 inhabitants.
Brocken-Hochharz was a Verwaltungsgemeinschaft in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was situated in the Harz mountains, southwest of Wernigerode. It was named after the highest peak of the Harz: Brocken. The seat of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft was in Hasselfelde. It was disbanded on 1 January 2010.
Wulften am Harz is a municipality in Lower Saxony, Germany, near the towns of Northeim and Osterode am Harz.
Elend is a district of the town of Oberharz am Brocken in the Harz District, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It lies in the Bode valley in the High Harz in central Germany, at a height of 505 m above NN. This part of the valley is known locally as Elendstal. Elend is located near the former Inner German Border between West and East Germany.
Stapelburg is a village and a former municipality in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the Nordharz municipality.
The Hassel is a river of Saxony-Anhalt, in the East Harz Mountains in Germany. It flows through several municipalities including Stiege and the town of Hasselfelde. Its source is located not far from Stiege. After about 10 kilometres (6 mi) it flows into the Hassel Auxiliary Dam and later into the Rappbode Reservoir.
The B 242 is a federal highway in Germany. It runs from Seesen to Mansfeld.
Oberharz am Brocken is a town in the Harz District, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was formed on 1 January 2010 by the merger of the town of Elbingerode with the municipalities of the former Verwaltungsgemeinschaft Brocken-Hochharz.
The Selke Valley Trail is a 67 km long footpath in the Harz mountains of Germany. It begins at the Selke Valley Railway station in Stiege and follows the River Selke in places. Along the route lie the villages of Güntersberge, Straßberg, Silberhütte, Alexisbad, Mägdesprung, Meisdorf, Ballenstedt, Gernrode, Bad Suderode and Quarmbeck. The end of the Selketalstieg is in Carl-Ritter-Straße in Quedlinburg. In 2006 the footpath was established by the Harz Tourist Association.
Selkenfelde is an abandoned village in Saxony-Anhalt in the central German district of Harz. It is located not far from the B 242 federal road between Stiege (Harz) and Güntersberge. According to legend the origins of the village go back to Charlemagne. It was first mentioned as Silicanuelth in AD 961 in two documents by King Otto I and co-regent Otto II dated 15 and 25 July. Selkenfelde had been already abandoned by the Thirty Years' War.
The Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway Company or GHE was a private railway company in Germany that operated the Selke Valley Railway. It had a junction with the network of the Nordhausen-Wernigerode Railway Company (NWE) at Eisfelder Talmühle station.
The NWE No. 21II, later DR 99 6001 is a narrow gauge steam locomotive that was built in 1939 for a track gauge of one metre and is still on duty with the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways (HSB) today.
