Felsenmeer Lautertal

The Felsenmeer is a stream of rounded granite blocks running about a kilometre down the slope of the Felsberg, formed by weathering of the granite along joints under a soil cover, with the finer material later washed away; the process is periglacial rather than glacial, and the boulders have not travelled far. Romans quarried here in the second and third centuries and left worked pieces where they lay when the operation stopped, including a giant column nine metres long and an unfinished basin, which can be found among the boulders. Scrambling down the boulder field is the usual way of visiting.

What you actually see

• The boulder stream - a kilometre of granite blocks down the slope.
• The Roman column - a nine-metre worked column left in place.
• The unfinished basin - a carved stone abandoned mid-work.
• The scramble - a route down over the boulders rather than a path.

When to go

April to October; the boulders are slippery and dangerous when wet or icy, and the site is best avoided in rain. Summer weekends are busy with families.

Honest expectations

Moving over the boulders means scrambling with real fall risk, especially when wet. There is a bypass path. Parking is paid and fills.

Nearby

Bensheim lies west; Michelstadt is east in the Odenwald.