A line from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s “Faust.” The mountain is the Harz Mountain Range, atop the Brocken, the highest mountain in the range where Faust made a deal with Mephistopheles, his soul in exchange for mere mortal knowledge and power.

And today I went to that mountain, right to the Brocken, via a very, very long hour and 40 minute train ride… 1 way. Though it’s a cool and old steam powered train, and takes you slowly up the mountain to see lots of rocks and trees. At the top is a museum explaining the history of the mountain range, and events during the separation of east and west Germany, as the mountain was right on the border line.

The mountain is also known for a little something else, which I’ll copy and paste from: https://www.stripes.com/travel/harz-mountains-lore-landscape-inspire-halloween-chills-1.58288

“Halloween is becoming increasingly popular in Germany, with American-style trick-or-treating and “spooky” events at places such as Frankenstein Castle, near Darmstadt, and at amusement parks.

But if you’re looking for the supernatural side of Halloween, head for the Harz Mountains.

For centuries the people of the Harz have been consumed with witches. A highlight is the night of April 30, Walpurgisnacht, when Harz witches were said to join the devil atop the Brocken — the mountain range’s highest peak — before descending with him into the underworld.

It is a frightful night throughout the region. Tens of thousands swarm the witchlore capitals of Thale and Schierke for the festivities, among them the age-old, witch-repelling ritual of rolling flaming bales of hay down the craggy mountains.

When Halloween comes around, the mountains are eerily quiet. But given its rich history of witch legends, and its stunning fall scenery, the Harz and its mystique conjure the perfect Halloween atmosphere.

The spirit of Halloween — a witches’ brew of traditions from the United Kingdom and Ireland — were familiar to early residents of the region. Its origin is an ancient holiday of the Celts, who built fortresses on the misty peaks. The Celtic festival Samhain, on Oct. 31, marked the beginning of the new year, a time when the natural and supernatural worlds were believed to mingle. The Germanic tribes that pushed the Celts out of the Harz made good use of its heights, too — as places of sacrifice.

The tales of Harz witches spread beyond its foothills. Cartographers sketched witches hovering above the Brocken on their maps, as the illustrated road signs in the Harz still depict. Goethe included a Walpurgisnacht gathering on the Brocken in “Faust.” And after German Inquisitors published the how-to-spot-a-witch guide, “Malleus maleficarum,” in 1487, Europe went on a rampage to take back the night, and began centuries of witch hunts.” You can read the rest of the article on the website.

Anyways, when you think of witches casting evil spells and riding on broomsticks, and fairies, whimsical fey and fantasy forest creatures, and haunted woods, the Harz Mountain range is the source of much of the inspiration with it’s numerous cool rock formations, cliffs, rivers, crags and valleys, and names. Everything is either “Witches’ this’, or ‘Devil’s That’ However, the mountain peak of Brocken does not exactly make you think witches and paganism with the museum, hotel, and large radio tower on top. Though from the top you can see all around the lands below you… or you could if it weren’t such a crappy day today. It was fairly overcast when I got to the train station at 9:20, and it mostly stayed that way going up the tracks, but it only got worse and worse as I got higher, until everything of any distance was just a big white cloud. It kinda cleared up a little bit for a time, but it was sooooo cold. I read a weather report before going and decided to go back and get my umbrella, as it looked like it might rain. I got out to the front door again and then decided to go back to get my coat as all I had was shorts and a t-shirt, and I’m glad I did. I didn’t use the umbrella, but it was freezing, and very windy on the summit. If you watched the video I took yesterday from the Castle courtyard, you can see at the end where I zoomed in is the Brocken Summit I went to today. The whole region is full of witchy themes, there’s a area nearby, more of a kids park called Hexentanzplatz (Witches’ Dance Place). A cliff called Hexenstieg (Witches’ Climb). There’s a large rock formation called Feuerstein, which a local liquor company is named after. There’s a bar and restaurant in the town square called Hexenkessel (Witches’ Cauldron), and lots of gift shops sell Halloween type decorations and in particular little witch figures all over. The whole valley is witch crazy… probably to bring tourism $$$. There’s also a heavy metal rock opera version of Faust that plays on the Brocken summit. This is unrelated, but there’s also a lot of nearby towns similar to Wernigerode, such as Hüttenrode, Timmenrode, Wienrode, Elbingerode and more.

Anyway, I took the lengthy train ride back, which goes right through the previously mentioned town of Schierke back to Wernigerode. From there I just did a bit more walking around town, including visiting the smallest home still in the city, and then going to the slanted Schiefes Museum (crooked museum) and old cloth mill that slants, (main picture in yesterday’s post).

Video! Standing on the platform between the traincars.