rare plants in the Wolfstal near Ulm
The Wolfstal is a narrow gorge that can be reached by car from Ulm in about 40 minutes. Just follow the B311 to Lauterach. There you turn right following the signs and after 1.5 km you reach the Wolfstal hiking parking lot just before the Laufenmühle.
If you want to do a circular hike, there are also several other possibilities. Around the "Großen Lauter" river there are a lot of possibilities.
The Wolfstal is located in the biosphere area Schwäbische Alb. This means that deadwood is not removed; at most it is cleared to the side so that it does not block the path. Since the rock walls are high and the valley is quite narrow in large parts, not much sunlight gets in. Many trees are accordingly mossy.
In spring you can also admire two protected plants. You can't miss the Spring Snowflake [↗], because thousands of plants cover the ground. You have to take a closer look to find the Scarlet Elf Cup [↗]. This one is on the red list of endangered mushrooms and accordingly, you should take the signs not to touch him seriously.
We were in the valley two times during the last weeks. On our first visit, it was still quite fresh and there were only a few examples of the spring snowflake. Due to the long winter, they are also late. In the meantime, however, they are in full bloom.
Since the Wolfstal is very easy to reach and to walk, it is of course quite popular. So you should be there as early as possible and if possible avoid the weekend. On our first visit, there had been relatively few hikers in the morning, but by 10 a.m. at the latest, mountain bikers and families were arriving for a walk. On our second visit on a Friday morning (though not really nice weather), we were alone.
