Zugspitze

The Zugspitze is the highest mountain in Germany, at 2,962 metres above sea level. It is located on the Austrian border beside the town of Grainau in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the federal-state of Bavaria. On the Austrian side lies the town of Ehrwald in the district of Reutte, Tyrol. There is a cog railway (Zugspitzbahn ) leading from the tourist resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen all the way to the peak. There are also two cable cars that go to the peak from the base of the mountain: one ascends from the German side of the mountain at the lake Eibsee, and the other ascends from Austria near Ehrwald. The peak is regularly crowded with tourists.

The border between Germany and Austria goes right through the mountain. There used to be a border checkpoint at the summit. But since Germany and Austria are now both part of the Schengen zone, the border crossing is no longer staffed.

The Zugspitze belongs to the Wetterstein range in the Northern Limestone Alps. It gets its name from the many avalanche passages (Lawinenzüge in German) on its steep north slopes.

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zugspitze - 27.05.2010