Vulkaneifel Geopark, Germany

This geopark is located in northwestern Germany at the transition between the lower land in the north and the hilly terrain in the northwest. It has an area of 1,220 km²and has been a member of the Global Geoparks Network since 2004. The Vulkaneifel Highland has gently sloping hills, numerous V-shaped valleys cutting through Devonian sedimentary rocks and nearly 350 eruption centres, indicating that the area has an exciting volcanic past. Several of the volcanoes are known for features from the Earth’s upper mantle and stacked masses. The geopark is a typical crater lake district. Seventy-four crater lakes have been discovered; nine are still full of water, whereas the others contain swamps and have dried out or have been eroded, leaving only remains. The most impressive are the three crater lakes that lie along an ancient eruption crevice, which have different water levels. The Pulver crater lake near Gillenfeld Village is round and is a complete crater. It is 1 km in diameter, and...