Nachtschreie gellen und Schritte schlorren....

This hike takes you from the little town of Ilsenburg to the Brocken summit - the highest mountain in northern Germany. The trail is named after the German poet Heinrich Heine, who is said to have travelled here. At several way points, Heinrich Heine and his poetry are remembered.

It is one of the longest hiking trails to the top of the Brocken, and probably also one of the most beautiful. In spite of its length and an elevation gain of about 850 meters, the hike is not strenuous or difficult. Because of its length, the trail is less frequently used than other, shorter, trails. On a Friday in July, we met very few people.

The Brocken summit is likely to be busy - on most days. Just before you reach the summit plateau, you cross the tracks of the nostalgic steam train. We learned that on fine days, the trains carry up to 15,000 people to the Brocken summit. Given its average population density, the Brocken summit is clearly no hiker's summit - but we were pleasantly surprised by the efficiency of the summit restaurants, and the good value for money of their meals and refreshments.

We recommend a short detour into the 'enchanted forest' - a boardwalk with epigrams etched into stone tablets.