Off to Europe : Deep in the Harz of German Lore and Legend : Mountainous region southeast of Hannover boasts fairy-tale towns and charming countryside.

Under their cloak of hard work, orderliness and no-nonsense, Germans are really romantics to the core. After all, this land of lore and legend gave us the Pied Piper of Hamelin, Snow White, the Brothers Grimm, Baron Munchausen and that master of japery, 16th-Century folk hero Till Eulenspiegel.

No particular German region has an exclusive right to all this fantasy and frivolity, as a visit to Cologne’s manic winter carnival or Bavaria’s equally frenzied Oktoberfest will bear out. But the fairy-tale Harz Mountains region in the former East Germany takes a back seat to none when it comes to folklore and fun all its own.

The region is one of Germany’s most bucolic and beautiful, ablaze with lilacs in spring, great fields of poppies in summer, wild violets, delicate gentians and plenty of wild mushrooms. The drive from Bad Frankenhausen to Stolberg is particularly beautiful, and we know of no region in Europe that has more half-timbered buildings than the Harz.

At the southern end of the Harz, near the pretty little town of Bad Frankenhausen, Kyffhauser Mountain holds a formidable bit of lore. Legend has it that Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I, a.k.a. Barbarossa, one of Germany’s most esteemed leaders, is asleep inside the mountain’s caves but programmed to awaken with the unification of his country.

Farther north, in the lovely old town of Wernigerode, Walpurgisnacht (Walpurgis Night)--the last night in April--is a big deal. That’s when hordes of witches come out to dance with the devil, leap over fires with banshee wails and carry on something awful. Local women get decked out in scary harridan costumes for the festivities, and every shop in town honors them by selling comic figurines of witches year-round.

Wernigerode is also noted for its town hall, a fanciful Gothic building right out of Hansel and Gretel. Couples from all over Germany dutifully wait their turns to be married in the colorful hall, first mentioned in 1277.

The absolutely charming village of Stolberg gets our nod as the prettiest little town in the Harz Mountains, and surely there can be no more than half a dozen others its equal in all of Germany.

Stolberg’s claim to everlasting humor is on display in its 1482 Rathaus (town hall). Behind the obvious entry facing the town’s main square, mischievous architects placed a toilet--nothing more--and steps leading to the building’s cellar. To reach any other rooms of the hall, one must climb stone steps at the building’s side.

Getting settled in: Stolberg’s Hotel Kanzler is just across the street from the Rathaus on the main square. It still has some of the original 18th-Century beams in atelier bedrooms upstairs. Renovated after Germany’s reunification and reopened under private ownership last year, the hotel’s use of natural woods throughout has given it a very contemporary feel.

Bad Frankenhausen’s Hotel Bellevue is another latecomer, having been a hotel only since its renovation in 1990. It’s on a woodsy hill at the edge of town, run by a husband-wife team and spotless throughout. There is a full restaurant in the paneled dining room, and an outside terrace cafe for good weather.

Hotel Weisser Hirsch in Wernigerode is right on the main square opposite that delightful town hall. It’s an old half-timbered building turned into a sparkling modern hotel that draws many locals to its handsome dining room and cafe on the square.

Regional food and drink: Nothing really jumps out to distinguish Harz food from the rest of German cooking, unless it’s the Stolberger Lerchen (larks), small sausages made of a beef-pork mixture and eaten with potatoes, sauerkraut or green cabbage. There’s also plenty of venison, wild boar and other game in season, plus trout from mountain streams and lakes.

Harzkase is a special Harz Mountains cheese, delicious with black bread. Wernesgruner, a pilsner beer brewed near Dresden since 1436, is popular. Barbarossa and Hasseroder are good beers, the latter bottled in Wernigerode.

Good local dining: In Stolberg, the Gasthaus Kupfer (Am Markt 23) dates from 1515 and is noted for Frau Roswitha Schulze’s superb kitchen (about $25 for two). Bad Frankenhausen’s Restaurant Piccolo (Heimstattenweg 16), is attached to a home in a residential section of the town, and was operated privately even before the Communists left ($20 for two). Wernigerode’s Zur Tanne (Breite Strasse 57), characterized by antlers and rustic wood carvings on its walls, is beloved by locals ($30 for two).

On your own: Stolberg is a perfect town for strolling, since it’s not too big and every half-timbered building has a character all its own. One of the most beautiful of these is the Museum of Local History, with tools of a 14th-Century mint and assorted crafts. You may also visit the Altes Burgerhaus Museum (an upper-class citizen’s home), dating from the 16th Century, to see how locals lived at that time. Just 22 miles from Stolberg is the Rosarium Sangerhausen, the world’s largest rose garden, with more than 6,500 kinds of roses laid out in beautifully designed gardens.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Bad Frankenhausen’s pretty Market Square comes alive with farmers and tradespeople in town to sell their goods and produce. Afterward, make the seven-mile drive up Kyffhauser Mountain for a look at mighty Barbarossa’s monument.

Sightseeing is made easy in Wernigerode by the cute little Bimmelbahn, a brightly painted miniature train (with wheelchair access) that makes a run through the town and up to the city’s castle, mentioned for the first time in 1213. It took on a Baroque character in the 17th Century, and is now neo-Gothic in style. The views down to the town and surrounding countryside are gorgeous.

GUIDEBOOK

Germany’s Harz Mountains

Getting there: Fly Lufthansa to Hannover via Frankfurt. A number of domestic and foreign carriers fly to Frankfurt. An advance-purchase, round-trip ticket on Lufthansa from Los Angeles to Hannover is $902. But until March 31, Lufthansa has a special LAX-Frankfurt round trip of only $498. The Frankfurt-Hannover round trip is $144. The best way to visit the small towns and villages of the Harz is with a rental car.

A few fast facts: Germany’s mark recently sold for 1.55 to the dollar, making them worth about 64 cents each. Stolberg is 16 miles north of Bad Frankenhausen, 25 miles south of Wernigerode. Hannover is 69 miles northwest of Wernigerode.

Where to stay: Hotel Kanzler (Markt 8, Stolberg, from U.S. phones 011-49-34654-205; $61 double B&B;); Bellevue Hotel (Goethestrasse 13, Bad Frankenhausen, 011-49-34671-2726; $79 B&B; double); Weisser Hirsch (Am Markt 5, Wernigerode, 011-49-3943-32434; $97-$100 double B&B;). For more information: Call the German National Tourist Office at (310) 575-9799, or write (11766 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 750, Los Angeles 90025) for brochures on the Harz Mountains and other German travel information.