The Rieseneiche of the Sauerbusch

In 1679 a forest protocol listed two oaks in the Sauerbusch as boundary markers. One of them is still alive. Its main stem broke off at about fifteen metres long ago, so what stands now is a trunk about 6.60 metres round carrying a crown made of single limbs. The local account puts it at up to 700 years, which is an estimate rather than a count; somewhere between four and seven centuries is the honest reading. The two oaks were probably mast trees, kept for their acorns, and both were placed under protection in 1938, although some sources give 1958. In 1993 a fire started by children killed the second one. This one carried on. It has not carried on easily. The forest district describes it as being in the last stage of its life, although it is still vital. Heavy growth covers the stem, one side is almost stripped of bark, and parts of it are held together with concrete. Even its height is disputed: the Wikipedia article says about 22 metres, the city's natural monument list says 14. A signposted trail, the Rieseneichen path kept by the heritage society in Weixdorf, leads through the far north-east of the Dresdner Heide to the trunk. It is a forest walk from Langebruck or Weixdorf rather than a city stroll, and this oak is the reason to make it.