Winterberg

Winterberg is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the middle of the Sauerland, at the source of the Ruhr and Lenne river, at 51° 12' North, 8° 32' East. Population: 14,676 (2002). Area: 148 km². It belongs to the district Hochsauerland.

History

Menden was declared city about 1270, and was member of the Hanseatic League from 13th till 17th century. However as it is located in high hills was swampy ground it always was a poor city. Only since tourism started about 200 years ago it started to blossom. In 1975 several small villages were merged into the city increasing the population notably - the center of Winterberg only has 4,536 citizens.

Points of interest

The second highest mountain of the Sauerland, the Kahler Asten is located in the city area, which also contains the spring of the Lenne and Ruhr river.

The city is one of the wintersports centers of the Sauerland, best known probably is the bob track.

Coat of arms

The arms show the city (the city walls only existed shortly between 1261 and 1266) behind the patron of the city, Saint James.

External links

• Official website (http://www.winterberg.de)