Have you ever felt the chill of a glacier’s breath? At the Aussichtspunkt Freiherr von Stein you can almost do so. This viewpoint offers a breathtaking panorama. It overlooks the Baldeneysee lake and its southern shore. More importantly it reveals a geological treasure. This is a window into Essen’s ice age past.
The Aussichtspunkt Freiherr von Stein isn’t just a pretty view. It’s a historical and geographical landmark. It sits slightly above Baldeneysee. The spot provides stunning views. It also offers a fascinating glimpse into an exposed section of the earth’s layers. These reveal ice age deposits above Upper Carboniferous sandstones. An information board on site details these geological wonders.
Imagine the power of the glaciers. During the Saale glaciation 300000-128000 years ago. Northern Scandinavian ice sheets reached the Ruhr River. Essen lay under a colossal glacier. The Ruhr River dammed by the ice. A massive lake formed east of Essen. It extended into the Sauerland valleys. Numerous glacial erratics are a legacy of this icy age. These transported rocks often hail from Scandinavia. They are composed of granite or gneiss.
The Aussichtspunkt Freiherr von Stein also reveals layers from later ice ages. These were significantly colder than today. The ice though lay further north. The Ruhr area was a treeless tundra. The river carried immense amounts of gravel. It frequently changed course. It was widely branched. Powerful gravel plains formed in the Ruhr valley. In subsequent warm periods the river cut into these plains. This was intensified by the region’s uplift. This resulted in different aged gravel terraces. The oldest are highest and farthest from the river. We can distinguish the main and middle terraces. These formed before the Saale glaciation. The lower terrace is from the most recent Weichsel glaciation about 30000 years ago. Terrace gravels untouched by erosion lie atop the Carboniferous coal measures. You see them here from this unique vantage point.
Behind the bench at the Aussichtspunkt Freiherr von Stein. You can clearly see rocks from both the Carboniferous and the Ice Age. Lower down are sandstone beds from the Upper Carboniferous Witten Formation. They are tilted due to folding. Above this is a layer of frost rubble from the Weichsel glaciation. This formed due to intensive frost weathering. Water entered cracks and fissures. It shattered the rock upon freezing. Fine grained material lies at the top. Loess and windblown sand deposited at the end of the last ice age. It was blown from the Rhine-Meuse valley. It was then deposited in the Ruhr area.
From the Aussichtspunkt Freiherr von Stein the view is captivating. It tells a story spanning millions of years. It speaks of glaciers vast lakes and powerful rivers. The story is written in stone. It’s a story only the Aussichtspunkt Freiherr von Stein can tell. So take a moment. Absorb the beauty. Feel the weight of geological time.