"Denk-mal" - Josef-Schöffel Monument

At the highest point of the nature park...

...there is a good place to reflect on the fact that the preservation of nature cannot be taken for granted. We call the Josef-Schöffel Monument "Denk-Mal", a German combination of the words "Denkmal" (monument) and "Denk mal" (think!). 

Who was Josef Schöffel?

The Schöffelstein is the highest point of the Nature Park (425 m). The hill is named after Josef Schöffel who, around 1870, when a large part of the Wienerwald was to be cut and monetarized, courageously opposed this destruction of the forest and fought for the preservation of the Wienerwald. In 1873 he finally succeeded in doing so. Josef Schöffel was then revered as a hero in almost all Wienerwald communities.

Wikipedia offers more detailed information (in German) about Josef Schöffel.

Purkersdorf was the first community to name a hill after him during his lifetime and to erect a monument there.

It is a good place to reflect on the fact that the preservation of nature cannot be taken for granted.

Restoration of a forest meadow ecosystem

Next to the monument is a small former clearing that over the years had become increasingly overgrown with bushes & shrubs. In 2017, the nature park started to restore this area to a species-rich Wienerwald meadow. Since then, the Schöffelstein meadow wiese is already blooming with many wildflowers.

At the edge of the meadow, beehives of our beekeeper have been set up, so that the bees ensure a further spread of the flowers. There are information boards at the meadow describing the changes on the area and informing about plants and animals in more detail.

A small resting platform invites you to linger and "dangle your soul".

Access

It is quite a hike to the "Denk-Mal" and the Schöffelstein. The approx. 200 meters in altitude can be overcome via different routes, e.g., via the Fledermausweg path from the Sängerbrunnen or via the Spechtweg trail from the Deutschwald visitor center.
Walking time from Sängerbrunnen site: about 30 min
Walking time from the visitor center: about 30 min