southernmost mountain region of the Rhenish Uplands in central Rhineland-Palatinate Land (state), western Germany, bounded by the Rhine (east), Mosel (north), Saar (west), and Nahe (south) rivers. The undulating Hunsrück plateau, extending approximately 55 mi (90 km) in a southwest-to-northeast direction and 20 to 25 mi in width, has an average elevation of 1,300 to 1,600 ft (400 to 500 m). It is traversed by several higher quartzite ridges including the Soonwald, Idarwald, and Hochwald, their highest peak, the Erbeskopf, reaching 2,684 ft (818 m) in elevation. The lower plateau regions have been cleared of much of their natural deciduous forest and are used primarily for cattle rearing, while the highlands remain covered by extensive beech and spruce forests. Small villages are the predominant form of settlement in the Hunsrück. Simmern is the region's principal town.