Geotopes Uhuklippen and devil's table
The giant basalt face
TheGeotope of the Year 2017- the Uhuklippen ("eagle owl cliffs") near Grebenhain form the largest rock formation in the so-called Schelgeswiesen forest. With a length of almost half a kilometre and a height of about 10 m, they are an impressive natural monument. The steep step is fitted into the slope, at its feet a slag heap with block rubble has formed. The Uhuklippen are made of a dark alkali basalt and are crossed by olivine and clinopyroxene sprinklings. The cliffs are part of the older lavas, which occur predominantly in the eastern part of the Vogelsberg. Due to the position at the edge of this basalt deposit one can speak of an erosion edge here.
From a distance one could think that these are cooling formations in the form of thick, vertical basalt columns. However, one speaks here of steeply standing, tectonically conditioned fissures.
Many of the rock formations form - with a little imagination - exciting figures or faces and several legends in the typical Vogelsberg way entwine around the cliff. Have you discovered the face?
A game with the devil
Nicht weit weg von der Felsformation am südwestlichen Ende der Uhuklippen finden wir den sogenannten Teufelstisch, oft auch Teufelstein genannt. Diese flachliegende Felsplatte besteht aus Basalt und hat einen Durchmesser von drei Metern. Sie erinnert an einen Tisch und der Sage nach, soll hier der Teufel mit zwei Waldarbeitern Karten gespielt haben. Neben dem Tisch findet man niedrige Basaltbruchstücke, die an Hocker erinnern, sowie ein bankförmiger Basaltblock. Wie die Formation an diese Stelle gekommen ist, ist bis heute unklar.
Not far from the rock formation at the southwestern end of the Uhuklippen we find the so-called devil's table, often also called devilstone. This flat rock plate is made of basalt and has a diameter of three meters. It reminds of a table and according to legend, the devil played cards with two forest workers. Next to the table there are low basalt fragments reminiscent of stools and a bank-shaped basalt block. How the formation came to this place is still unclear.
Location, reachability & accessibility
The geotopes are located south of the road in the Schelgeswiesen forest. Parking is available at the "Pflanzgartenhaus" in Hochwaldhausen. The geotopes are freely accessible and are located on the route of the Volcano-ring as well as Geo-path between Hoherodskopf and Ilbeshausen-Hochwaldhausen.
- GPS N 50°31.128960' E 9°18.620640'
- UTM 32U 522001/5596364
