North of the Danube, between Passau and Regensburg, the Bavarian Forest has a middle-mountain landscape, where rocky spurs alternate with plunging gorges and rolling valleys. To the south, almost 25 000ha are protected within a national park, where 320km of paths take you closer to the wildlife. The major sites include the summits of Großer Rachel, Lusen, Große Falkenstein and the lake, Rachelsee. Along with the Bohemian Forest (Czech Republic), the Bavarian Forest is "Europe's green roof".