Subparts
Northern Thuringia
Blick auf Neustadt
Goldene Aue
Blick ins Eichsfeld
Blick vom Kyffhäuser-Denkmal zum Kulpenberg
Barbarossa-Höhle
Talsperre Kelbra
Northern Thuringia is characterized by the Southern Harz Mountains, the Kyffhäuser Mountains, the Goldene Aue Valley, and the Eichsfeld. In the tri-border region of Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt, and Lower Saxony, is where the first elevations of the Harz Mountains as well as the unique gypsum karst landscape of the Southern Harz Mountains are to be found.
To the Southeast is the Kyffhäuser range and at its bottom the Goldene Aue, traversed by the Helme River. Its low-nutrient meadows, gypsum slopes, wet pastures, salty springs, and ponds provide habitats for a unique flora and fauna; for example, the Kelbra dam is used as a roosting place by cranes. Other dominant features of the Kyffhäuser Natural Preserve and the fertile, largely farmed Goldene Aue region include beech forests and old-growth orchards.
The Eichsfeld area, situated to the West, is interspersed with shell limestone plateaus and deep valleys carved by rivers. Apart from fertile, mostly cultivated landscapes, the Eichsfeld is characterized by deciduous yew-dominated forests that boast tremendous biodiversity. Wooded slopes and narrow valleys form a gently undulating landscape whose scenic variety is enhanced by small lakes and green meadows.