Ride into the horizon – a cycling adventure through Steinburg in Holstein

Your tour through the Marschhöfe begins in Krempe at its historic market square. Past an old mill you drive on beautiful, flat bike paths to Neuenbrook. The place is a typical street village with idyllic courtyards to the left and right of the road that runs through the marshland. There is an interesting neo-Gothic church in the village.Along the Kremper Au you continue to Steinburg and back to Krempe via the street villages Süderauerdorf, Elskop and Krempdorf. The numerous farmhouses along the way radiate a very special charm.

The Geestrand tour starts in the lovely town of Krempe and takes you into a varied and exciting landscape. After a few kilometers you will already reach the inland dunes Nordoe. They were formed during the last ice age, have a distinctive flora and there are also two lakes with sandy beaches for swimming and relaxing.After a curve over Heiligenstedtenerkamp you drive through the Krempermoor to the street village Neuenbrook. In the middle of the marshland, idyllic farms are lined up to the left and right of the road.Sometimes your path meanders, sometimes it leads straight through the marshland. You reach your starting point of Krempe via the small towns of Greenland and Süderau.

The Fleth tour begins in the friendly small town of Krempe and leads via Krempdorf along the Stördeich. On the way to Neuenkirchen you are surrounded by numerous Flethe and a wonderful expanse.Along the sturgeon dike you come to the Else sturgeon ferry, the last of its type in the area. Then it goes into the "interior" to Krempermoor. The inland dunes Nordoe and the Krempermoor lie a little off the path - both natural jewels that are worth seeing and worth a detour.Then it goes back to Krempe. There you can stroll a little through the chic streets with the half-timbered and brick houses after the tour.

The pasture trip begins in Glückstadt and leads along a picturesque pasture landscape, which is criss-crossed by numerous intertwined water lines that serve for drainage. The marsh is drained and irrigated via the “white water”. The black water drains the boggy hinterland on the Geest edge. In the past, these were the transport routes used to ship vegetables and peat around the world.It continues to Herzhorn. From here you drive over the old dike lines, such as on the Kamerlanderdeich or the Obendeich. The dikes have always served as flood protection against the Elbe and Stör and were important connecting routes.You cycle on behind Herzhorn through the idyllic, polluted willow-lined march. The pollarded willows were previously used for stems and wicker. The path leads back over Moorhufen to Glückstadt, where you can end the day in one of the cozy restaurants and cafés on the picturesque market square.

You start the stork trip at the train station in Horst. From there you drive north to Horst-Herzhorn. Along the route you will find several stork nests that are occupied from spring. So you can go on a stork discovery tour.We continue to Hohenfelde with its pretty church. The entire town center has practically not changed in its structure for centuries.After you have left the place behind you, you immerse yourself in an impressive geestal landscape. Lonely paths lead you through the wonderful nature and here and there you see remains of old peat cuttings. The path finally leads you back to Horst via small, dreamy villages.

The summer cruise starts at Horst station, just four minutes by train from Elmshorn. First you drive to the Horstmühle, which was once operated by wind. You can still see the remains of the old windmill today.Then it goes to the community of Sommerland. The name of the village suggests its interesting history: Before the dike, the marshland near Horster Geest only protruded from the water in summer, so it could only be used for agriculture then. Since the artificial drainage, the water level is no longer a problem for the residents.Through the districts of Siethwende and Dückermühle, the path leads you back to Horst via Schönmoor and Moordiek.

The fruit tour takes you through the fruit growing region around Kollmar and Neuendorf. It starts on the wonderful beach of Kollmar. Here the Elbe is several kilometers wide! After a short bike ride you will reach the Krückau barrage. The barrage was built after the great storm surge of 1962 using dry construction, which means that the barrage was first built next to the river and then the river was channeled through the barrage in a new bed.Then you cycle through a uniquely beautiful landscape. The views from the dam on the marshland and the fruit trees of all kinds are wonderful. In Kronsnest you can watch at the weekend how Germany's smallest ferry translates pedestrians and cyclists into the Seester Marsch.The way back to Kollmar meanders through small, quiet villages. Before you get to the former Krückau outer dike, you can take a look at the so-called Brake, a natural monument.

The Kiebitztörn begins at Horst train station near Elmshorn. The route leads you through the village of Kiebitzzeile into the nature reserve Königsmoor.The vastness and seclusion of individual courtyards offer an impressive landscape. The endangered lapwing, namesake of this tour, is at home here in the march and, in addition to the rose garden in Altenmoor with many historical rose varieties, is a very special attraction.You will meet a frog on the way. At least in the form of a statue. It is the heraldic animal of Altenmoor and symbolizes the coexistence of humans and animals. Via Siethwende you will reach your starting point again, the Horst train station.

From Glückstadt, the vegetable trip first leads in the direction of the Stör barrage. In this area of the cycle route you can already see a vegetable growing area which, …read more

Kollmar is the ideal starting point for the Deichtörn. The center of the place is the centrally located harbor, which you can reach through a passage in the dike - called Stöpe. The wonderful sandy beach of Kollmar is worth a trip in itself and offers you ideal relaxation after the tour.From Kollmar you drive along the Elbe dike to Bielenberg. On this section, the big "pots" on the Elbe are within reach. There is also a wonderful sandy beach in Bielenberg. Here the route crosses the dike inland. The two small ponds that you will see in a moment are so-called brakes that were created by a dike breach in 1756.The route leads you in a wide arc through the fertile Kollmaraner Marsch back to Kollmar. Long stretches of the path line historic and new dyke lines. The display boards on the topic of storm surges and coastal protection are interesting on the Deichtörn.

This short round starts in Itzehoe and leads through the former grounds of the Breitenburg Castle. From the center of the city it goes south over the Stör. Soon you …read more

This tour takes you into the forests and meadows of the Störmarschen, the Breitenburger wood and the Stör lowlands. Right at the beginning you cycle through Itzehoe, where you can fortify yourself with a coffee. The first few kilometers are leisurely uphill, but then that's it with the inclines and the rest of the day is flat.Through a beautiful meadow landscape you come to a pretty forest. In the middle of it all, the Lohmühlenteich awaits you, a wonderful natural pool that invites you to swim and bathe in summer.Shortly afterwards you drive through Hohenlockstedt, where a huge military camp was built from the middle of the 19th century, of which a few traces are left today. Back to Itzehoe it goes over the magnificent Stör lowlands. If you still have a little time, you can stroll through the natural forest and observe all kinds of animals and plants.

This varied tour takes you to the north of Itzehoe. Even before you leave the city, there are always small patches of forest or meadow along your way. The beautiful geest landscape begins from Edendorf.After a good ten kilometers you will reach the "Hungry Wolf" airfield, which is particularly popular with parachutists. The northernmost point of the Auwiesen tour is in the Rantzau floodplain in the village of Peissen. From there it continues through the beautiful Drager Forest.As soon as you have left the forest, you will find yourself in the pretty meadow landscape of the Bekau. Pleasant, level bike paths lead you to Hohenaspe, where you can climb the bell tower of the Sankt Michaelis church. A few minutes by bike you will reach the path on which you left Itzehoe and drive it back to your starting point.

On this tour you will explore the lowlands of the Bekau and discover not only the river but also other interesting bodies of water. It starts in Itzehoe in the direction of Oldendorf.After you have crossed the Bekau for the first time, you will come to the Muldsberger Grube. Clay was mined here until 1996 and then everything was flooded. Today the lake is an idyllic natural highlight that you can walk around in around an hour.You drive back via Kleve. There the 20 meter high Geestkante rises impressively over the marshland and you can enjoy an extraordinary view of the Herrenmoor. The path meanders through the marshland back to Itzehoe, where you will reach your starting point again.

On the Störtörn you go on a journey through time, because this is where the first Wilstermarsch settlers settled. Their impressive thatched roofs and farmhouses still bear witness to this …read more

A few minutes by train from Itzehoe, in Wilster, this unique tour begins with a real highlight; the lowest point in Germany. It starts in the village with its pretty old town, past the historic grain mill.The flat, green marshland with its old thatched courtyards and watercourses is unique in Germany. The canals permanently drain the area, which is 3.54 meters below sea level at its deepest point.After you have crossed the beautiful Wilsterau River, you will reach the Kiel Canal, the most traveled artificial waterway in the world. Back to Wilster it goes through the wonderful marshland again.

In Lägerdorf, chalk was formed from marine deposits 75 million years ago, which is why chalk mining is deeply rooted here and is still practiced today. The deepest chalk pit …read more

There are several interesting manor complexes to discover around Itzehoe. This route takes you to the north of the city through beautiful nature and small towns. Right at the beginning you will pass the oldest secular building in Itzehoe, the Prinzesshof district museum.After leaving Itzehoe behind you, you cycle through the charming Geest landscape to Mehlbek, with its aristocratic Gut Mehlbek. The Muldsberger Grube is very close by. Where clay was once quarried, a pretty lake has been created around which a circular path leads.Through the state forest of Barlohe you continue to Drage, where you will find the next manor. A few kilometers later, the Sankt Michaelis Church in Hohenaspe is waiting for you, whose church tower you can visit. You get back to Itzehoe on small streets.

Expanse, expanse, expanse - that is our Elbe tour. The Elbe is several kilometers wide here, the ocean liners that pass you are gigantic. You start your bike tour in Brokdorf directly on the dike and drive a piece of the Elbe upstream. The wide views are unique!At the estuary you turn inland to Wewelsfleth. It is the largest municipality in the Wilstermarsch and is known for its centuries-old shipbuilding tradition. A detour to the port can therefore be worthwhile. It continues through the wonderfully idyllic marshland to Sankt Margarethen. The community has already received the “Beautiful Village” award several times and is known for its invented national drink “Sankt Margarethener Damenlikör”.At the end of the tour, the path leads you back to the Elbe dike with once again fantastic views of the broad river. After the tour you can relax on Brokdorf Beach or visit the adventure pool.