Lahn spring, Natural spring in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
The Lahn spring is a natural water source in the Rothaar Mountains of North Rhine-Westphalia, where the Lahn River begins its course. From this point, the water flows for several hundred kilometers before reaching the Rhine River near Lahnstein.
The Lahn River has been used for milling and trade since the Middle Ages, and its source in the Rothaar Mountains was already known to early settlers in the region. Over time, towns grew along the riverbanks, making the waterway central to the life of communities far from this starting point.
The name Lahn comes from an old Germanic word for slow-moving water, which fits the gentle way the river begins its course here. Hikers often stop at the spring to mark the starting point of a journey that follows the river downstream through several German states.
The spring sits along marked hiking trails in the Rothaar Mountains, with a small parking area near the hamlet of Lahnhof. Information panels at the site explain the river's origin and help orient visitors who want to continue along the trail network.
The water at the Lahn spring is clean enough to drink straight from the ground, which is not common for publicly accessible natural springs in Germany. Visitors can taste the water directly at the source without any treatment.
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