Bodies of water are a rarity in the Spessart.
The few were created to water the famous oak and beech trunks or to regulate the course of rivers.
That, a purposeful, but completely different reason also led to the damming of the Wiesbüttsee in the Hessian-Bavarian border area between Flörsbach and Wiesen.
It was created a good 250 years ago on a 400 meter high mountain ridge so that in the Biebertal, five kilometers away, there would be sufficient "impact water" available for the complex pumping systems of the silver and copper ore mines there.
Little reminds of that - apart from this pond fed by underground springs, which, already without a function, happily survived after the last mines had been shut down in 1925.
The nature park and forestry then ensured orderly conditions.
One half is allowed to take its natural course, the other is used for leisure purposes, and there is even a narrow sandy beach.
Bathing only for the intrepid
However, given the brackish water, the (permitted) bathing should be something for the intrepid.
Hiking and nature observation are the favorites here, after all the idyll of the Wiesbüttsee does not stand alone.
Right behind it is the only "intermediate moor" in the Spessart, without having the melancholy character of a high moor.
Golden yellow grass, heather, seven stars or the characteristic "cotton balls" of cotton grass give the island-like biotope framed by trees an almost cheerful character.
The eleven hectare nature reserve can be completely surrounded.
Display boards explain that even this can be indirectly traced back to human activity.
Soil and pollen analyzes suggest that the area was settled a good 2,500 years ago.
Peat formation began when medieval clearing on the flat massif allowed more water to flow in than out.
At its peak in the 18th century, when mining and smelting required large quantities of wood, the peat cover grew two meters thick.
Glass manufacturers also played their part in the overexploitation of forests and water.
So the huts, like most of them, didn't trail behind trees and quartz sand, and in some places permanent sites emerged.
Two of those uncovered near Wiesen have been basically reconstructed – to the south on the Birklergrund, where flat glass was produced under pre-industrial conditions in the 18th century, and further to the west near the Kahlquelle.
The smelter, named "Epstein" after an owner, was founded in 1510 and produced the most important export product of the Spessart - drinking glasses - in all sizes and varieties.
Directions:
Before the start in Bavarian Wiesen, the view goes to its most important buildings, the baroque parish church and the Kurmainzer Jagdschlösschen from 1597 (privately owned).
Opposite, take the Franconian Marienweg (red-blue) in Aubachstraße.
After turning right, it makes a left curve through homes and upwards in the open area and then into the forest, where the sign W 1 (black) appears.
This becomes 800 meters further on a meandering path at the direction post of the Erkelshöhe to the left.
From the 500 meter high elevation we have to descend between magnificent beeches, where we walk exactly on the Bavarian-Hessian border in order to strive for the Wiesbüttmoor in Hesse on the right after one kilometer.
The main path - with a viewing platform - runs to the left;
you can also choose the northern variant, which gives a slightly better view overall.