Laubwald am Hasselbachgraben Nature Reserve: Geography, Mapped Boundaries, and Protected Landscape

The Hasselbachgraben valley itself was created in 1920, shaping the hydrological and landscape character that later became the basis for protection. Although the forest around it had been used and managed for many years, the area was not given formal nature reserve status until 1999, when it was designated as the Naturschutzgebiet Laubwald am Hasselbachgraben under the framework of the Simmerath landscape plan.

Within this later protected designation, the Kreitzberg compartment was recognized as Naturwaldzelle Nr. 1 of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, marking it as the state's first official old-growth forest reference site. This elevated the reserve's profile beyond a local protection measure, embedding it in a state-wide network of natural forest reserves. Subsequent management has focused on maintaining old beech and oak stands, preserving natural rock outcrops and extensively used oat-grass meadows, and gradually transforming even-aged spruce stands into more natural beech-dominated woodland.

The landscape of Laubwald am Hasselbachgraben is defined by the deeply cut valley of the Hasselbachgraben, which runs broadly from east to west through the reserve. The stream bed, its springs, and its small tributaries remain largely in near-natural condition, with rocky and earthy banks rather than engineered channels. The valley contains a footpath along its edge and connects the small settlement of Raffelsbrand in the east with the broader Dreilägerbach reservoir catchment to the west, a distance of roughly eight kilometers downstream.

Above and around the valley, the terrain rises into forested slopes typical of the northern Eifel. The forest canopy combines beech, spruce, and oak on rolling to moderately steep ground, with scattered natural rock formations breaking through the soil cover in places. Small clearings and extensively used oat-grass meadows add open elements to the otherwise wooded landscape, providing structural variety and edge habitats within the protected area.

Ecologically, the reserve is characterized by a mosaic of near-natural forest types interspersed with aquatic and semi-aquatic habitats. The forest includes Hainsimsen beech woodland (Luzulo-Fagetum) as a key habitat, alongside oak-rich stands and smaller components of birch and other broadleaf species. Swamp and riparian woodland, particularly along the Hasselbach and its spring brooks, supports moisture-loving species and adds to the structural diversity.

Springs and near-natural, unchanneled stream sections are core features of the reserve, hosting underwater vegetation and providing breeding and feeding habitat for amphibians and aquatic invertebrates. Small areas of extensively managed oat-grass meadow (Glatthaferwiesen) represent the open-ground component of the habitat mosaic. Together, these elements make the reserve an important refuge of broadleaf and stream-associated habitats in a regional landscape otherwise dominated by conifer plantations.

The combination of old trees, abundant dead wood, near-natural streams, and undisturbed springs makes the reserve valuable for a range of forest and stream-dependent species. The woodpecker community is particularly notable: the black woodpecker and the grey-headed woodpecker are highlighted as characteristic breeding species, dependent on the large amount of standing and fallen dead wood generated by old beech, oak, and birch trees.

Amphibians are well represented, with fire salamanders and common frogs recorded as key species that benefit from the cool, moist conditions along the Hasselbach and its tributaries. The mix of wet woodland, swamp forest, and aquatic habitats along the stream supports additional invertebrates and small fauna typical of near-natural Eifel stream valleys, while the old-growth character of the Kreitzberg compartment in particular creates habitat for cavity-nesting birds and other species associated with mature deciduous forest.

Laubwald am Hasselbachgraben is formally protected as a Naturschutzgebiet under German nature conservation law, classified as IUCN Category IV, a Habitat/Species Management Area. The reserve is identified by the code ACK-063 and is registered in the World Database on Protected Areas under ID 318717. It is administered by the Untere Landschaftsbehörde of the Städteregion Aachen and operates within the framework of the Simmerath landscape plan.

Conservation objectives focus on maintaining near-natural deciduous forest with a high share of old and dead wood, securing spring and stream habitats in their natural state, and preserving oak stands, natural rock formations, and extensively used meadows. A central long-term aim is the gradual conversion of even-aged spruce stands into more natural beech-dominated woodland. The Kreitzberg Naturwaldzelle gives the reserve an outsized conservation role, serving as a state-wide reference site for the original beech forest communities of the Rureifel and an anchor point in the regional biotope network of near-natural beech forests.

The reserve's standout features include the old-growth Kreitzberg Naturwaldzelle, the near-natural Hasselbach stream system with its springs and tributaries, and the rare concentration of native broadleaf forest in a spruce-dominated regional landscape. It combines active habitat management, long-term ecological reference value, and a position within the catchment of the Dreilägerbachtalsperre.

The reserve can be appreciated at any time of year, but spring and early summer are especially rewarding when the deciduous canopy is fully leafed, the oat-grass meadows are in growth, and amphibian activity along the Hasselbach is at its peak. Autumn brings strong color in the beech and oak stands, while the structural richness of the forest, with its dead wood, rock outcrops, and varied stream sections, remains visible year-round.