Top 20 Natural Monuments around Bark

A beautiful, naturally preserved area.

The Wittenborner Heide nature reserve remained nutrient-poor and unfertilized due to its previous use as a military training area. This resulted in a diverse landscape of heathland, moors and sparse forests that provide a habitat for many species. You can hike through a very beautiful landscape that is always worth a visit.

The 28 hectare Ihlsee is located on the northern outskirts of Bad Segeberg and is a very special body of water: Unlike most lakes in Schleswig-Holstein, the Ihlsee is low in nutrients and lime and is therefore the habitat of extremely rare plant species in this country. Typical are the lawns of European sea larkspur, which grows from temporarily dry shore areas to a depth of around 2 m. In addition, sea quillwort and water lobelia grow in the shallow water zones, pushing their pale blue or white flowers above the water surface in summer. The Ihlsee is the last body of water in Schleswig-Holstein where the water lobelia and the shimmering luminous algae, which occur at greater water depths, occur. In total, at least 11 species of submerged leaf plants live in the Ihlsee, some of which are highly endangered. Aquatic plants can be found here as deep as 9 m. The clear water of the lake makes this possible, as sunlight can penetrate to these depths. Due to the comparatively low nitrogen and phosphorus content of the lake water, plant and animal plankton, which cloud the water in many other lakes, develop only sparsely. The Ihlwald forest, which borders the southern shore of the lake, is also part of the 42-hectare nature reserve, which is managed voluntarily by NABU Bad Segeberg. The wild Ihlwald forest can be admired from a hiking trail. The shore is quite overgrown, so unfortunately you can't see much of the lake, but it is still a beautiful path through the nature reserve. Due to the damp site conditions, a large part of the area consists of black alder swamp forests with downy birch and peat mosses, as well as ash wet forests in which stately pedunculate oaks grow. https://www.naturpark-holsteinische-schweiz.de/naturschutzgebiet-ihlsee-und-ihlwald

The Ihlsee is located in the northwestern part of the town of Bad Segeberg, on the northern edge of the Kleinniendorf district, and is part of the designated Ihlsee and Ihlwald nature reserve. The formation of the lake has not been fully investigated. Either the depression formed after the Ice Age due to dead ice, or it originated as a sinkhole through the collapse of a cave in the Segeberg salt dome. Today, the lake has an area of approximately 29 hectares and extends 450 m in a north-south direction and approximately 850 m in a west-east direction; the shoreline length is 2.25 km. Along with the Bültsee and the Garrensee, the lake is one of the few nutrient-poor lakes in Schleswig-Holstein. The lake lies in a depression and has no inflow. It is fed only by groundwater and inflowing surface water (precipitation). North of the bathing area is the outflow, which connects the lake with the Großer Segeberger See. The lake can be circumnavigated, but there is no path directly along the shore. On the eastern shore, there is a bathing area that has existed for decades; the bathing water quality is regularly monitored and has been rated very good to good in recent years. A residential area is located on the northern shore. On the western and southern sides, the Ihlwald, a swamp forest, determines the shoreline strip. From 1911 to 1961, there was a train station at the Ihlsee for the Kiel–Segeberg narrow-gauge railway, the tracks of which were removed as early as 1962. The Ihlsee was designated a nature reserve in 1950 due to its special characteristics. The lake is a particularly nutrient-poor body of water, which results in a rare flora. Today, the lake is part of the Ihlsee and Ihlwald nature reserve and, since 2006, part of the Natura 2000 protected area network. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ihlsee

The Ihlwald hiking trail is very popular as a dog-walking route.

The Ihlwald is mainly a deciduous forest and therefore offers very good protection against extreme heat and light rain.

Tip: The evening Karl May events end with fireworks.

Tip: The 91 m high limestone mountain is not made of lime (calcium carbonate) but of gypsum (calcium sulphate).