established in the district and now has around 10.800 inhabitants, while the town is also a thriving tourist area. Nevertheless, Blumberg has retained a small town sense of community and traditional character, with time-honored seasonal festivities, customs, street parties, and parades such as those for Swabian–Alemannic Fastnacht, Carnival, continuing to take place. Small specialized local stores that go back generations still exist, and for a few weeks multi-colored, decorated, and filled carnival doughnuts can be found at artisanal bakers, where handmade bread, cake and cookie specialties are freshly baked daily. While from the early hours of the morning master butchers, Metzger, begin producing the region's traditionally seasoned cold cuts, sausages, and terrines as well as fresh meat and Silesian specialties from what is now mainly Poland. Tourism Blumberg is set in the center of one of the most scenically beautiful areas of Germany, with everything from castles, nature parks, forests, lakes and mountains, to skiing, sailing, spas and tourist routes. While close by are historic cities filled with culture as well as endless shopping possibilities, and Switzerland is just minutes away. It is also the starting point for the legendary Sauschwänzlebahn, The Pigtail Line, The Wutach Valley Railway. An old-fashioned steam locomotive, with original carriages, which runs on a railway line that curves and loops around Blumberg like a curled pigtail. It is run as a railway museum and travels on elevated tracks across the countryside throughout the summer months. This had to take a break from November to March 2013 and 2014 as over 200 endangered Barbastella bats had set up their winter quarters in the six railway tunnels, and trains would have disturbed the animals. Geography Districts The municipality of Blumberg is made up of the districts of Blumberg Achdorf, Blumberg, Epfenhofen, Fützen, Hondingen, Kommingen, Nordhalden, Riedböhringen and Riedöschingen, and, with the exception of Blumberg itself, each of these has its own district council, which is the custom in Baden-Württemberg. The village of Achdorf is the only one remaining of the original settlements alongside the river Wutach, which lies within scenic Wutachschlucht, the 30km long pre-historic Danube Wutachschlucht gorge. Religion Even after the Reformation the Blumberg region remained predominantly Roman Catholic, and produced a Cardinal, Curial Cardinal Augustin Bea. Born the son of a carpenter on May 28, 1881 in Riedböhringen near Donaueschingen, he died in Rome on the 16th of November, 1968. A museum has been created