The Arnsberg Forest Nature Park, founded as early as 1961, is situated in a charming location on the southern edge of the Westphalian Bay, bordered to the north by the Haarstrang and to the south by the Ruhrtal. With a size of 482 square kilometers, it extends over large parts of the district of Soest and the Hochsauerlandkreis.
With its pristine forests and waters, the nature park offers an ideal habitat for various animal and plant species; for example, it harbors one of the largest red deer populations in the Federal Republic. From mid-September to the beginning of October, the evening visitor to the nature park often hears the rutting cry of the red deer. The red deer itself, however, is rarely seen. The sika deer, a small East Asian deer species that was released into the wild from an enclosure some time ago and has since grown into a sizeable population in the nature park, can be observed much more frequently. Churned up areas of the forest floor also reveal the presence of wild boar.