Aschberg, Summit in Hütten Hills, Germany

Aschberg is a hill roughly 98 meters (320 ft) tall located in the Hütten Hills nature park in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany. A hotel with a restaurant and a freestanding observation tower stand at the top, from which the Baltic Sea is visible on clear days.

A copper statue of Bismarck that had stood in a tower near Apenrade was taken down in 1919 and later moved to this summit in 1930. This brought the hill into the story of how the region handled its monuments after the end of the German Empire.

The Aschbergfest, held on the hill with interruptions since 1921, began as the Nordmarkfest organised by North Schleswig Germans who had moved south after the 1920 plebiscite, as a replacement for the Knivsberg festival. The 1930 edition saw the Bismarck statue dedicated. Since 1986 the Aschbergsingen has brought several hundred people together on a summer evening to sing folk songs, a tradition started by pastor Jochen Senft and led from 2009 by pastor Frank Boysen.

The top is reached through the hotel grounds, which also house the restaurant. Clear days give the best views from the tower, so it is worth checking the weather before you go.

The hill sits along the Nature Park Way, a trail that links five separate nature parks across Schleswig-Holstein. Walking this route turns the summit into one stop along a much larger journey rather than a standalone destination.