"Picturesque villages, idyllic stream valleys, vast silent forests, old volcanic cones, rare animal and plant species, evidence of the former iron ore mining industry and remains of the Roman border wall Limes and much more is the Rhine-Westerwald Nature Park. In natural terms, the area of the nature park, which covers around 470 km2, belongs to the Lower Westerwald and is therefore part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. Almost half of the nature park area is forested. The special attraction of the Rhine-Westerwald Nature Park is its three-part landscape. This includes the steep, rocky vineyards in the Middle Rhine Valley, runs along the tranquil Wiedtal valley and reaches up to the first ridges of the Westerwald. To the east, the meandering Wied river with its sloping and sliding slopes forms a varied and attractive recreational area. In addition to the Rhine and the Wied, the valleys of various streams characterise the landscape and are home to many botanical rarities, such as the Fockenbachtal, which has been designated as a core zone of the nature park."