Donau-Ries north there is the Nördlinger Ries, a huge depression, which is in fact an ancient impact crater, caused by a meteorite some 14.8 million years ago. Donau-Ries Donau-Ries ("Danube-Ries") is a "Landkreis" (district) in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Ansbach, Weißenburg-Gunzenhausen, Eichstätt, Neuburg-Schrobenhausen, Aichach-Friedberg, Augsburg and Dillingen, and by the state of Baden-Württemberg (districts of Heidenheim and Ostalbkreis). From Palaeolithic times on the Nördlinger Ries was a very attractive site for human settlement. The valley of the Danube was abounding with game, and many caves in the slopes of the
Donau (horse) for $2,100 in 1912 and from Patton's personal correspondence, the gelding had a nervous and flighty personality similar to his older brother Donau. According to Thomas Piatt, Donau had a fiery temper as a yearling, repeatedly kicking any other colt that would come near him. Piatt typically reared his yearlings in group pens, but Donau's fractious behavior led Piatt to separate him from other horses. Piatt raised Donau at Brookdale Farm until September 1908, when he was sold to William Gerst for $350. Gerst emigrated to the United States from Germany as a child and was a founder and part