Large parts of the Thuringian Forest are powdered white. Winter hikes and tobogganing are possible in many places. Most of the ski lifts are currently being prepared for operation.
Oberhof (dpa/th) - No trails have been groomed yet, but in many places the Thuringian Forest has wrapped itself in a white winter coat. According to the Thuringian Forest regional association on Saturday, there is between 10 and 18 centimeters of snow, often powder snow, at altitudes. If there is frost, further snowfall is expected over the weekend. In the winter sports resorts, the lifts on the most popular slopes would be prepared for their season. It is scheduled to officially start on the fourth weekend in Advent.
Kilometers of winter hiking trails have already been prepared in the Thuringian low mountain range. There are currently 21 routes in total. This is the case in Brotterode/Trusetal, Ilmenau/Manebach, Oberhof or Tambach-Dietharz, among others.
At Oberhof, with an average snow depth of around 10 centimetres, the first ski lift and the first snow tubing facility of the season went into operation on Saturday, according to the regional association. Tobogganing is not only possible in Thuringia's most famous winter sports resort, but also in Oberweissbach and Spechtsbrunn.
In Sonneberg, you can skate in the ice rink on an area of 30 by 60 meters. It is possible to rent ice skates or to use ice skating learning aids.
The regional association scheduled the start of the alpine winter sports season for December 17th. The wintry conditions on the Rennsteig with permafrost provided good conditions for preparing the lift operation not only in Oberhof, but also on the slopes in Schmiedefeld and Steinach. On the weekend before Christmas, the three large lifts that attracted 90 percent of alpine winter sports enthusiasts in the Thuringian Forest would go into operation.
The lift systems have been approved by TÜV, and some of the gastronomic offers, including ski rental, have been overhauled and improved. In the ski and bike arena Silbersattel in Steinach, however, it will not work without artificial snow even in good winter weather, the regional association explained.
