Rustling leaves and the scent of damp earth fill the air here in the Karswald. This vast woodland stretches east of Dresden. It is a realm interwoven with meadows and marshy patches. The Karswald covers approximately 1300 hectares. Note that some sources claim only around 550.
The Karswald’s story begins in the 13th century. The noble Karras family held these lands around 1350. Their name echoes in the forest’s very title. They possessed the Wilschdorf farmstead and the surrounding woods.
Geographically, the Karswald presents a gently undulating landscape. Its highest point is the Vogelberg in the Harthe area. It rises to a modest 295 meters above sea level. Small streams carve shallow valleys. A network of ditches manages excess rainwater. Remnants of old dams and drainage systems hint at former ponds. These features are a legacy of earlier land management.
Keep an eye out for glacial erratics scattered throughout the Karswald. These boulders are remnants of the last Ice Age. Some were used in the construction of the railway line. The railway significantly shaped the Karswald’s appearance between 1872 and 1875. The forest floor comprises loess, sand, gravel, and loam. Patches of granodiorite and greywacke also appear.
Three ancient routes cut through the Karswald. The old Dresden-Bautzen post road, now the B6, runs east to west. The Bischofsweg once linked the bishop’s seat in Meißen with Stolpen Castle. Another road connected Pirna with towns in Lusatia. These were Pulsnitz, Kamenz, and Bischofswerda. The Schenkhübel and Schwarzes Ross inns stand as testaments to the area’s lively past.
In the Karswald’s northwest lies the abandoned village of Reinhardtswalde. First documented in 1517, it was already called a deserted village by 1819.
The Central Institute for Nuclear Physics was founded in 1957 within the Harthe forest. This research center spans 186 hectares. Housing was needed for construction workers. After construction, the settlement became housing for institute employees.
Northeast of Rossendorf lie earth ramparts. These mark the former dynamite factory of Radeberg. Established in 1883, it was one of Saxony’s first. Production shifted to Freiberg, and the Karswald factory became a reserve. From 1923 to 1940, the area was leased to IBIS, a pharmaceutical company. Saxony acquired the land for forestry. The buildings served as housing, but they were demolished in 2010. Today, only the earthworks remain.
Today, numerous hiking and riding trails crisscross the Karswald. The Saxon St. James’ Way also runs through the forest. An archery range occupies the old dynamite factory site. The disused Arnsdorf-Dürrröhrsdorf railway is now a draisine track.
The Fischbach district forester manages forestry operations. Maps suggest a wild boar enclosure existed here in the past. The Dittersbach quarry is nearby. In the past, the Karswald was a source of peat. The Radeberger brewery sources its water from the Karswald. In 1901, a 7.5 km pipeline was built to transport the water to the brewery.
The Karswald has several memorial stones. The Tittmannstein honors Ernst Gustav Tittmann. The Richterstein commemorates Alfred Richter. The Mordstein marks the murder of E. R. Schmidt. The Duellsteine mark the site where Freiherr Leberecht Dietrich von Rahden died in a duel. The Leuschnerstein memorializes Friedrich Ludwig Leuschner. The Petzoldt family gravestone tells a tragic tale from the end of World War II. The Ulbricht family gravestone shares a similar story. The Ottenstein commemorates Jürgen Otte.
So take a moment here in the Karswald to breathe deeply. Reflect on the echoes of history that resonate within these trees.