| Long Rhön | |
|---|---|
 View of theHeidelstein | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | Heidelstein |
| Elevation | 926 m above NHN |
| Geography | |
   | |
| State(s) | Fulda District,Hesse,Rhön-Grabfeld District,Bavaria,Schmalkalden-Meiningen District,Thuringia ( Germany) |
| Range coordinates | 50°27′31″N10°00′24″E / 50.45861°N 10.00667°E /50.45861; 10.00667 |
| Parent range | High Rhön,Rhön |
TheLong Rhön (German:Lange Rhön) is a ridge in theCentral Rhön which forms part of theHigh Rhön within theRhön Mountains. The Long Rhön is an elongatedbasalt plateau in the centre, roughly 800 metres above sea level, which is only occasional interrupted by mountain peaks. Its highest mountain is theHeidelstein (926 m above sea level (NHN)).[1] A majority of the area is part of the Long Rhön Nature Reserve. In this area of the Rhön is theBlack Moor.
The Long Rhön was first defined in 1968 as part of thenatural region classification (M = 1:200,000) as anatural region and grouped as follows:[2]
The boundary of the Long Rhön in the west along theUlster valley may be taken fromHilders to its source roughly on the 600-metre-contour. TheB 278 and an imaginary line several hundred metres west to roughly the height of theRhönhaus separates it from theWasserkuppen Rhön. The treeline as far as theRhönkopf may be taken as the boundary with theEastern slopes of the Long Rhön to the south and east of the area, continued by an imaginary line running north-northeast to the L1123 near Reichenhausen. The boundary in the north with theAuersberg Kuppenrhön is once again the 600-metre-contour and thuse circumnavigates theBuchschirm.
In 1969, Frankenheim had the following climatic statistics: 940 mm of precipitation, about 125 days of mist and fog during the year, and an average annual temperature of 5.1 °C.[1]As a result of centuries of deforestation a harsh, grassland countryside has evolved on the Long Rhön. Reforestation was not undertaken until 1815. Over 80% of the land is used for agriculture.[citation needed]