Who are we? A look at the history behind the adventure mountains

Man sieht eine schwarz-weiß Aufnahme eines alten Skilifts von Josef Wiegand. Es liegt Schnee und um den Lift herum sind hohe Tannen. Unter dem Lift stehen zwei Personen auf Skiern.

The first ski lift

Josef Wiegand, the founder of Wiegand Erlebnisberge, discovers his love of winter sports during a skiing vacation in South Tyrol. Josef Wiegand builds the first ski lift on Hessen's highest mountain, the Wasserkuppe.

1963 - Construction of the first ski lift on the Wasserkuppe

The Wasserkuppe becomes a well-known destination for winter sports enthusiasts in the region.

Eine schwarz-weiß Aufnahme der 70er Jahre. Man sieht eine junge Frau auf einem eselsähnlichen Schlitten. Sie bekommt von den Mitarbeitern der Bahn geholfen. Im Hintergrund stehen noch weitere Personen die nicht zu erkennen sind.

Use of the lift in summer?

The ski lifts stand still in summer. Josef Wiegand looks for a new use for the lift. After a few test runs, the first prototype of the summer toboggan run is built in 1975. At this time, the toboggan is still pulled uphill on the lap.

1975 - First prototype of a summer toboggan run on the Wasserkuppe

Josef Wiegand is considered the inventor of the first modern summer toboggan run. This idea gave rise to a whole new line of business: the production, operation and sale of summer toboggan runs. Wiegand has been building summer toboggan runs all over the world ever since. So it is only natural that more adventure mountains are being built in Germany.

Man sieht eine frei schwebende Brücke, den Skywalk. Unter dem Skywalk verläuft eine Strecke für den Alpine Coaster. Alles ist umringt von Bäumen und im Hintergrund sieht man noch Gebäude stehen.

The adventure mountains are growing

The company surrounding the summer toboggan run grows. More summer toboggan runs are built and attractions (e.g. Wie-Flyer, witches' broom and climbing forests) are added.

Today, Wiegand Erlebnisberge can be found in numerous federal states. You can spend a whole day here with your family and see if there is an adventure mountain near you...

To the adventure mountains...

To the Wiegand Erlebnisberge...

What type are you?

Tub or rail

There are two types of summer toboggan runs. First there was the classic trough run. The toboggan runs down the mountain in a stainless steel tub. The Alpine Coaster, which was developed later, is a summer toboggan run on rails. Here the toboggan travels down the mountain on stainless steel tubes. Today, Wiegand is the world market leader in summer toboggan runs.

www.wiegandslide.de