Monte Kaolino
Encyclopedia
Monte Kaolino is a sand dune in Hirschau
, Germany
in Bavaria
region. It consists of 35 million tonnes of sand, a by-product of kaolinite
production over the years. The sand dune is now used as a ski resort
in addition to other activities.
The hill is home to the Sandboarding World Championships.
, and trails.
Hirschau
Hirschau is a municipality in the Upper Palatinate district of Bavaria and in the county of Amberg-Sulzbach.- Location :Hirschau lies directly on the German Federal Highway 14 and ca. 20 km east of the Autobahn 6 ,and ca. 15 km west of the Autobahn 93...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
region. It consists of 35 million tonnes of sand, a by-product of kaolinite
Kaolinite
Kaolinite is a clay mineral, part of the group of industrial minerals, with the chemical composition Al2Si2O54. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral sheet of alumina octahedra...
production over the years. The sand dune is now used as a ski resort
Ski resort
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...
in addition to other activities.
Sand-skiing and sandboarding
By 1950s the pile of sand had grown large enough that people experimented skiing on it and in 1956 a ski club was formed. Unique for this hill, skiing is done directly on the sand and as a result, its operating season is inverse with ski areas elsewhere - it only opens in summer, even though the area does snow in winter.The hill is home to the Sandboarding World Championships.
Recent history
The area was extensively renovated in 2007. In addition to the ski hill, there is also camping facilities, pool, geoparkGeopark
A Geopark is defined by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in its UNESCO Geoparks International Network of Geoparks programme as follows:...
, and trails.