At the farther end a winding road called "The
Ascent" leads up the steep mountain to an elevated region of country
thinly settled and covered with herds of cattle. The cherries--which in
the Rhine-plain below had long gone--were just ripe here. The people
spoke a most barbarous dialect; they were social and friendly, for
everybody greeted us, and sometimes, as we sat on a bank by the
roadside, those who passed by would say "Rest thee!" or "Thrice rest!"
Passing by the Titi Lake, a small body of water which was spread out
among the hills like a sheet of ink, so deep was its Stygian hue, we
commenced ascending a mountain. The highest peak of the Schwarzwald, the
Feldberg, rose not far off, and on arriving at the top of this mountain
we saw that a half hour's walk would bring us to its summit. This was
too great a temptation for my love of climbing heights; so, with a look
at the descending sun to calculate how much time we could spare, we set
out. There was no path, but we prest directly up the steep side through
bushes and long grass, and in a short time reached the top, breathless
from such exertion in the thin atmosphere.
The pine-woods shut out the view to the north and east, which is said to
be magnificent, as the mountain is about five thousand feet high.
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