Pfad der Pioniere 03: Harte Brocken

On the path of the pioneers, you will come across bizarre rock towers again and again. They consist of a holey, ochre-yellow-grey rock, the Rauwacke. This type of limestone was formed more than 200 million years ago by deposits at the edge of the primordial sea Tethys. At that time, the Triassic, the climate was very warm. Due to the high evaporation, dolomite, gypsum and anhydrite were deposited in the lagoons in addition to limestone. These rock layers were pushed far upwards during the formation of the Alps and are now exposed to wind and weather. Because anhydrite and gypsum are water-soluble, they are washed out of the stone over time. This creates the holey structure.