Badener Höhe, Mountain summit in Baden-Baden, Germany

Badener Höhe is a 1,002-metre mountain in the Northern Black Forest, the highest point in Baden-Baden and the northernmost thousand-metre summit in the Black Forest. Its summit holds a refuge hut and the 30-metre Friedrichsturm, a red sandstone lookout tower. The western and southern slopes lie within the Black Forest National Park.

The Friedrichsturm observation tower was built from red sandstone in 1890 and named during its inauguration by Grand Duke Frederick I of Baden in 1891. Following closure in 2002 due to safety issues, it was fully restored through public donations in 2003.

The tower's name honours Grand Duke Frederick I of Baden, who laid the foundation stone in 1890 and inaugurated the Friedrichsturm in 1891. The Baden-Baden branch of the Black Forest Club, founded in 1884, had pushed for its construction. Hikers on the Westweg long-distance trail pass the summit, and the tower remains a local landmark.

The tower is reached by a spiral staircase: 35 steps lead to the lower platform at about 6.5 metres, and another 133 steps to the top platform, whose stair exit is protected by a lockable metal structure. The summit forest was largely lost to storms including Hurricane Lothar, so there is little shade along the final approach.

The red sandstone structure faced collapse in 2002 until local donors stepped in to save it from ruin. This restoration shows how much the tower matters to people in the region.