Rhön ski area set to become even more attractive

The Wasserkuppe, the highest mountain in Hesse, has been one of the state’s most important ski areas for years. To attract even more skiers to the Rhön in the future, a feasibility study has now been commissioned to determine whether the existing downhill slope can be extended to a total of 1.2 kilometers. This would double the length of the run from the Wasserkuppe down into the valley towards Reulbach, with a vertical drop of around 250 meters. The starting point would remain at around 950 meters, while the valley station would be moved to 700 meters above sea level.

Josef Wiegand, who has operated lifts on the Wasserkuppe since 1963, came up with the idea of modifying the Wasserkuppe downhill run. Wiegand has already found two helpful and committed supporters in Manfred Helfrich (CDU), mayor of Poppenhausen, and Andreas Schubert, who runs a hang-gliding and paragliding school in the Rhön. The three have no doubts about the project’s technical feasibility, which would involve, among other things, building a bridge over the existing county road from Abtsroda to the Wasserkuppe. The feasibility study is therefore intended primarily to clarify whether there might be objections to extending the Wasserkuppe downhill run on nature conservation grounds. Another relatively straightforward step would be to purchase the land needed for the project.

As a model for the Wasserkuppe ski area in the Rhön, Wiegand often points to Willingen in the Sauerland, which is at an even lower elevation than the Wasserkuppe but has become a magnet for thousands of winter sports enthusiasts thanks to its modern snowmaking facilities. There are also five snow cannons at the Wasserkuppe, ready to easily provide artificial snow for the extended run. So far this season, the Rhön has reported 80 days with snow—undoubtedly a record number.