Mirkwood

Location: The Black Forest, Germany

Bilbo and his cadre of dwarfs voyage through Mirkwood, a forested realm of secretive wood elves, wolves and malevolent giant spiders. Nights in Mirkwood are cold, and so dark that Bilbo can see only the eyes of others looming around him — and not just those in his traveling band. The Black Forest in southern Germany earned its name from petrified Roman soldiers who had to troop beneath its dense, coniferous canopy, constantly fearful of the enemies that lay silently in wait.

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