The Kuehkopf has about 2370 acres in size and is the biggest nature
reserve in Hessen. Additionally it carries the names
"Europareservat" and according to the local regional council in
Darmstadt it falls under the guidlines of the European Union
"Fauna, Flora, Habitat" (FFH-Guideline). So besides of the
geological importance it is of ecological importance today. One
experience this unique reserve when hiking one of the trails with
in total of 60km lengths.
Riverside woods are the dominating factor on the island.
The softwood take a large portion of the woods.Especially the white
willow tree is widely spread. Due to the numerous floodings of the
island the tree is perfect fit for the island as the tree can stand
in water for about 300 days of the year.
Before the white willow came to grow on the island, 30 million
years ago in the tertiary time the ground went down and during the
course over millions of years together with the eruption of the
mountains on the eastern and western side of the valley, the river
Rhine came to his current flow. Since the island was created in
1828/29 by local goverment decision the island became a natural
flooding area in the spring when the Rhine carries the water down
to the ocean. This reservat is now the home of over 250 species of
animals.
The theme granite and sandstone of the area and the UNESCO
Geopark orignates from the diversity of stones within the river
Rhine, Main and Neckar area. The castles near Heidelberg are mainly
build from the granite and sandstones whereas the red sandstone is
dominanting in the Main and Odenwald area.
Not only stones where used for building but also the sand that was
surfaced out of the river Rhine was/is being used todays world.
Near the cache coordinates you find overlook plattform that stand
on old sand digging industry that helped Erfelden grow and become
of economic importance.
At the coordinates of this cache you will find 2 signs giving
additional background of the area and the Kuehkopf in general.
In order to log the cache please answer the following questions
while being on site.
1. Name the three main units that the underlying geology is
subdivided in (west to east)
2. What was created about 245 million years ago?
3. Please complete: Gabbro ----------- Massiv
After approval of these questions you can log it and please take
a picture of you and/or your GPS on top of the nearby bridge in a
NW direction and include it with your log
Please enjoy the geological site and learn about the underlying
geology
Please allow your email address to be send when answering the
questions as this guarantees best response and no confusion. Kind
regards.