Amselfall—Caspar David Friedrich’s Source of Inspiration
Due to a forest closure, the Amselfall is currently inaccessible. (As of August 5, 2026)
“This is the spot where the Freischütz cast his bullets,” read an inscription on a stone plaque at the Amselfall around 1900. Johann Friedrich Kind, who wrote the libretto for the opera *Der Freischütz*, is said to have had this very spot in mind when he wrote the famous Wolf’s Gorge scene.
A wildly romantic gorge, a cave entrance hidden behind the veil of a waterfall: it’s a motif that even Caspar David Friedrich couldn’t resist.
It soon became a popular destination with an inn. Today, the trails are protected by scaffolding to guard against falling rocks, and the inn and information center are closed.
Hiking suggestion:Malerweg, Stage 2
“This is the spot where the Freischütz cast his bullets,” read an inscription on a stone plaque at the Amselfall around 1900. Johann Friedrich Kind, who wrote the libretto for the opera *Der Freischütz*, is said to have had this very spot in mind when he wrote the famous Wolf’s Gorge scene.
A wildly romantic gorge, a cave entrance hidden behind the veil of a waterfall: it’s a motif that even Caspar David Friedrich couldn’t resist.
It soon became a popular destination with an inn. Today, the trails are protected by scaffolding to guard against falling rocks, and the inn and information center are closed.
Hiking suggestion:Malerweg, Stage 2
