The extreme hiker Benno Schmidt, known as "Brocken-Benno", celebrated his 90th birthday on Sunday.
The Saxony-Anhalt State Chancellery honored "Brocken-Benno" on this occasion in the short message service Twitter as "Federal Order of Merit, State Order of Merit, Harz Ambassador and with 9000 Brocken ascents also record holder".
The tweet, which was also shared by Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU), ended with the words: "Congratulations!"
Schmidt, who was born in 1932, received the Federal Cross of Merit with Ribbon from Haseloff in September 2020.
"Brocken-Benno" can meanwhile refer to 9,000 ascents on northern Germany's highest mountain (1,141 meters).
This has also made it into the Guinness Book of Records several times.
According to his own statements, he now only rarely hikes up the Brocken because of cancer.
According to his website, Schmidt still wanted to be there for his 90th birthday on Sunday.
In his own words, Schmidt had been annoyed for 28 years that he couldn't hike up the Brocken.
From his place of residence in Wernigerode, he always looked up longingly.
The Brocken was a restricted military area when Germany was divided.
A month after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the gate to the Brocken was also opened.
Since that day, December 3, 1989, Benno Schmidt has hiked up countless times.
For him, the Brocken is a symbol of unity and freedom today.