Irenensee

"Not for many women, you have to change all the maps"
Due to the fascinating history of u. s. I found an interview with Friedrich-Wilhelm Meinecke, the son of the farmer Fritz, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary (2011) of the local recreation area around Lake Irenen: myheimat.de/uetze /freizeit/friedrich-wilhelm-meinecke-not-for-many-women-you-have-to-change-all-maps-d1729460.html?msclkid=29cc985acf1e11ecb6e27480f6e62938
Here Mr. Meinecke jun. the development that the Irenensee recreation park has undergone in recent years and what is still planned for the future.

The farmer Fritz Meinecke and his wife Irene were horrified: they probably only learned from the newspaper that the "Burgdorfer Konserve" was closing. The homestead and the many fields with vegetables, especially carrots, threatened to end.
The canning factory in nearby Burgdorf near Hanover has been a reliable customer for the Uetz harvest throughout the years.
47 years ago, the smart farmer had a clever idea. Meinecke let go of farming. He put everything on one card. He and a friend came up with an exotic, whimsical plan.
Fritz Meinecke planned a holiday area at the gates of Uetzes.
With caterpillars, excavators and loads of truckloads, the subsoil was being removed hour after hour, day after day and week after week.
Today's lake landscape on Irenensee and Spreewaldsee was created in winding paths and leaving bits of island behind.
While a weekend settlement was being established on the Spreewaldsee, a very fine swimming lake was being dug up in front.
Out of love for his wife, the clever Fritz named the resulting water Irenensee.
In the years that followed, a die-hard, cozy campsite and mobile home area developed there.
With a lot of skill and attention to detail, a headland was created, a fountain installed and a circular path with buildings and plants, as well as a sandy beach. (T. Fassbender)

In winter (autumn & spring) you can enter the Irenensee recreational park and walk around the lake without paying