Top 20 Natural Monuments around Steyerberg

From the Tempelberg lookout point, you can enjoy a view over the Weser glacial valley and, in good weather, even as far as the Weser Uplands. There, you'll find the Lönshütte, a shelter where hikers can stop and enjoy a snack. At Tempelberg, you'll also meet Lüttjemann and Püttjerinchen. A story by Hermann Löns (1866-1914). The little gnome Lüttjemann goes on a journey and has several adventures. At the end of his journey, he meets Püttjerinchen, and they celebrate a gnome wedding.

A "highlight" of the Kirchdorfer-/Kuppendorfer Heide-Rund; you have to do it ;-).

Simple but cozy and clean open weather shelter with benches and tables. Various information about the hiking trail etc. is hanging on the walls. When we visited, there were two fire bowls with firewood in front of the hut. Next to the hut there is a simple organic toilet. The official inauguration of the “Lönshütte” took place on Saturday October 25th 2014: https://www.brokeloh.de/huette.html When the weather is nice, there is also a great view.

Little info from the internet: The Frenchman's Stone Today it is still called “Franzosenstein”, the one meter high sandstone column on the highest point in the community of Kirchdorf. This relic from the past always puzzles visitors. The following is recorded in the Kirchdorf community archive: Kirchdorf, which belonged to the Uchte district under Hessian administration, came under French rule in 1803. Under the direction of Colonel Epailly, survey officers erected a twelve meter high tower. At this point a first order triangle network (“Canevas die Triangles du Ier ordere executes par M. Epailly”). From here the following main points were recorded: the church towers of Twistringen and Asendorf, the signal towers on the Mordkulenberg west of the Dümmer in the Dammer Mountains (141 m above sea level), on the Hüttenberg in Grinderwald (101 m above sea level), a mountain near Loccum and the Knickberg (86 m above sea level). At the same time, French observers were able to monitor events in all directions. In 1813, after the French era, Kirchdorf fell back to Hesse and the twelve meter high tower was destroyed. In 1814, Prince Regent George of Hanover and England elevated his electorate to a kingdom, including the Hessian territories. In 1816, King George IV ordered the extension of triangulation to the entire Kingdom of Hanover. Under the direction of C. F. Gauß, the survey work also began on the Knickberg, for which he had a stone built with a pedestal and a slab on top, which fell victim to deliberate destruction. As a replacement, a one meter high sandstone pillar was erected with the carved inscription “Königl. Hann. Country. Surveying.”. This stone still stands on the Knickberg today, which is incorrectly referred to as the “Franzosenstein”. Perhaps arbitrarily by the Prussians who annexed Hanover in 1866 after the Battle of Langensalza. In 1886/87, as part of the Prussian survey, Prussian surveying officers built a wooden tower on a stone foundation at this point, which was then called the French Tower. After about 25 years, this too disappeared. In 1919 the decree came that no more towers should be erected. Today's visitor is no longer able to look out from all sides of the Knickberg. He is in the middle of the forest, where a bench invites him to rest. Not far from the supposed “French stone” there has been an embedded square stone with a cross for years, the so-called “trigonometric point”, which serves as a survey point for our land registry office for the height of the Knickberg (86 m above sea level).

The place on the “Große Aue” has been the location of the mill since 1298. At this time the mill served purely as a grain mill for grinding grain. In 1859 a sawmill was added to the grain mill, and the floodplain now powered four mill wheels. A comprehensive renovation took place in 1913, during which the water wheels were replaced by a turbine. After mill operations stopped in the 1970s, the turbine continues to run and generate electricity today.

The core nature reserve "Schustufe Schlüsselburg" is formed by the dammed 5.5 km long "upper water" of the Weser loop near Schlüsselburg, including the narrow bank meadows between the Weser dykes. The foreland between the dike and the Weser stands out due to its great biodiversity and structural diversity. Nestled in meadows that are managed under nature conservation principles, there are several small bodies of water with meadow meadow forests, well-developed reed areas and herbaceous meadows. Field hedges, groups of trees, small bodies of water and uncultivated fringe strips on the Weser also contribute to the habitat diversity. In addition to a rich birdlife, there is also an interesting insect fauna here. Apart from the numerous species of water birds that frequent the Weser, there are also many songbirds here. Source: https://www.schluesselburg-weser.de/natur-und-umwelt

In the years after the Second World War, everything was done to turn the Große Aue into a canal-like river and thus to achieve a flood-free river course. In the 1980s, initiatives in the Minden-Lübbecke area led to the decision to renaturate the river landscape. The landscape, which has become species-poor as a result of the expansion, should recover. Alluvial forests, hedges and the typical plants and animals should be given a habitat again. When the ground-breaking ceremony for renaturation took place in 1989, this project was unique in North Rhine-Westphalia. The monotonous river bed and its up to 300 m wide side spaces were redesigned to form a near-natural meadow landscape. Approximately 200 hectares of flood plains have been reclaimed. The technically upgraded barrel was largely preserved. At the same time, a new body of water was created that flows into the old course at several points. From today's perspective, a species-rich animal and plant world was created without flood disasters being expected. Source: Wikipedia

They come from the Weser and have a mysterious origin. The Water and Shipping Office is constantly removing heavy stones weighing more than three tons from the river bed with their floating grab, but it doesn't take long for some to "grow" back. The hydraulic engineers are faced with a puzzle. More boulders (natural monuments) are located a little further north on the Weser Cycle Path at the tip of the Weser Peninsula and just before Nienburg Harbour. Many farmers also experience this as a problem on their fields. Every year they "harvest" stones from their fields, which seem to grow back like potatoes. With regard to this phenomenon, the State Office for Mining, Energy and Geology in Hanover refers to the occurrence of cryoturbation, a general term for all movements caused by the effects of frost in the ground. Source: https://www.mittelweser-tourismus.de/poi/nienburgs-findlinge-1/