Shaped from fire and water: The Goose Rock Formation From the Salinental, one looks eastwards to a rock formation that looks like a huge slagheap. This was given its name in Celtic times: "Ganda", i.e. steep slope with rock debris. Elementary forces have shaped the goose. 280 million years ago, magma came to the surface from the earth's interior, solidified and formed a rock massif to which both Rotenfels and Rheingrafenstein belong. The Nahe - Celtic "Nawa" - carved its way into this rock and dug its way deeper and deeper into it. This is how the narrow valley was created. The rock dumps were formed during the cold periods when water penetrated the rock at extreme temperatures and blew it up. This geological situation has created a barren Mediterranean habitat. It is a nature reserve because of its geological peculiarity, exceptional fauna and flora and its scenic beauty. The mixture of barren soil, dryness, heat and high temperature fluctuations favour plants and animals that are particularly rare in our latitudes: e.g. Pentecost clove, diptam, red stone seed, mountain weed and rock pears. The rock maple, which is otherwise more common in Provence, has its roots in rock crevices. From the Mediterranean to the Middle East, it is native to the Nahe Valley, where it forms a scattered outpost far to the north. The magnificent green lizard is often seen sunbathing. Connoisseurs* discover rare butterflies such as the white-spotted ram. It is threatened with extinction. It is worthwhile to climb up the Goose from the Karlshalle or to reach the cliff edge on one of the hiking trails from the hiking portal Rheingrafenstein. You will be amazed at the small, multi-stem oaks that can be found everywhere. They are the remains of an oak peeling forest. The bark was used for tanning until about 1900 and the tree was cut again and again. From a beautiful vantage point not far from Rheingrafenstein Castle, you can look far into the Nahe Valley, beyond the Bad Münster am Stein-Ebernburg district.
