JR56

Today's tour started from the "long-term parking lot" at the Elb ferry Hoopte opposite the Zollenspieker. There are plenty of free parking spaces nearby, but most are limited to 2 hours of parking directly at the ferry behind the dike. However, some long-term parking spaces to the left of the ferry are not limited in time, free of charge and also specially signposted. From there you have great views of the Elbe directly from the car and it is also a good starting point for tours in the area.
Of course, you should not block the few free long-term parking spaces when the weather is nice and busy, but it is better not to block the whole day, but to look for another one. Today, on a windy, cloudy Monday, there wasn't so much going on and there were always places available.
We continued along the Seeve to Maschen. The checkerboard flower bloom was already over at the end of May, but it was still very nice in the lower lowlands.
A special highlight for me was the cattle meet tunnel, which is also called the cow meet tunnel. A very low, long and dark tunnel that leads under the Maschener marshalling yard. The entrance on the northeast side is only approx. 1.85m high and on the southwest side approx. 2m. With my 1.91m height and the 60s bike frame it was pretty flat and I should have pushed a little bent. The water level of the Seeve was, however, very low, so that one could drive through to the right of the concrete section on the slightly lower paved part. In the end, however, there was moist mud on the pavement that you couldn't see in the dark tunnel and it was very slippery, so I still had to push the last few meters on the higher left concrete track. The tunnel is pitch black and there are also stones and branches on the way - so you have to be really careful. It is a bit adventurous and not for the faint-hearted - it was great fun.
Wherever I was in the area, I had to do a "check" at Dieter Bohlen's villa in Tötensen. He lives there beautifully hidden behind thick hedges and walls.
From there we went back to Hoopte in a round across the villages. Since the beginning of the 1980s I have been traveling here and there again - also a lot with the motorcycle and I could refresh some memories today - it was nice. 😊The final tour and photo editing takes place later.

Because it rained all day today, I only started this tour in the late afternoon after the rain radar showed better prospects. The tour started in Geesthacht and first led me across the Elbe Bridge to the southern bank of the Elbe in Rönne. From there it went along the Elbe to Hoopte, further along the Ilmenau to Fahrenholz and from there back over the villages.
The weather lasted for a while, then it started to shiver again and again, but I was able to shelter myself well and in between the sun came through again and again. The showers grew longer, however, up to the heavy rain with hail and thunderstorms - but I was still able to report in time. It was only on the way back between dogs and crumbs that a large area of heavy rain caught me on the open road and the little tree I was standing under no longer offered protection. Standing under a tree during a thunderstorm isn't so happy🙄 Since I was soaked anyway, I just started driving. You immediately feel a lot more connected to nature ... Schlaumichel would have said: "You just have to put up with it when you set off in such weather." He is right and sometime you dry again. Before that, however, I was rewarded with a beautiful rainbow at the pumping station in Fahrenholz. I hadn't seen such a great one in a long time.
The route can be driven consistently well without any special features. I can recommend it. When the weather is nice, it is even more fun

With Marlies and Buddy, we cycled relaxed through the NSG Lanken to Gut Basthorst in fine spring weather. There was only moderate activity for a Father's Day, but it was also much more pleasant

A wonderful spring day for another tour through the beautiful Lüneburg Heath. It started in Soderstorf and first led me past the old water mill and the Thansen estate to the natural wonder of the Schwinde (Bach) spring.
Finally a source from which the water actually springs out
The Schwinde spring in the heath village Schwindebeck is a very inspiring sight. It has been under nature protection since 1936 and is the second largest source in all of Lower Saxony. You can watch the well-accessible spring wonderfully as it constantly pushes new water from below out of the sandy bottom and whirls up real fountains of sand. The reddish yellow discoloration comes from the iron content.The spring water has a constant temperature of approx. 9 degrees Celsius and does not freeze even in winter. This is particularly important for the local animal world, which also has reliable water access in winter.
The source of dwindling can be visited at any time, parking spaces are available. You can of course also hike on foot or include it as a stopover in a bike tour.
More information about the source: www.https: //soderstorf-online.de/die-schwindequelle/Then we went past the St. Pauli Church in Hörpel to the Totengrund. The St. Pauli Church would actually be an excellent place of pilgrimage for all St. Pauli football fans
Then via Wilsede to the Wilseder mountain. I've been here a few times over the years. Mostly in August when the heather blooms. Now in the spring it is also beautiful here. I can highly recommend it.In terms of route, everything was there again today. From a very smooth route, over cobblestones to the narrow, steep tree root path and deep, soft sandy paths. More an MTB tour and only partially suitable for descendants. Wider tires are very helpful here. The paths at Totengrund and Wilseder Berg are particularly difficult. If you like to torture yourself a bit and like it a bit adventurous, this is the place for you. Those who prefer to be more comfortable should hike here better, that's challenging enough.
It was great fun again today and I only met a relatively small number of people - it was very lonely at times - it will be much fuller tomorrow, on Father's Day and at the weekend

The bike tour today started in the early afternoon in Salzhausen and went through the villages & through the beautiful Lüneburg Heath to Amelinghausen.
This is really a very attractive route, which has a lot to offer, as the many photos show - they speak for themselves - I save myself more words.
I know this area very well from the past through some motorcycle and other tours - my son had also lived here for a while.
Actually, I wanted to go further to the shrinkage source, etc. - but unfortunately there wasn't enough time for that today. I will combine that with another tour to Wilseder Berg and the surrounding area. One of the top highlights today was the Oldendorfer Totenstatt, which I can clearly recommend and of course the Lopausee and Amelinghausen and and and ..... 😉

Comfortable Sunday afternoon tour from Winsen on the Stöckter Deich along the Luhe to Ilmenau and the Elbe. Today, in addition to Marlies and Buddy, my son and daughter-in-law were also there. Was very relaxed and fun. I was very reluctant to take photos today so as not to annoy the others with many stops. 😉

Originally I wanted to drive the classic Preetz "Schusteracht" route today, which is well signposted everywhere. But then I decided on my own route because I like to make individual decisions on site and drive differently than planned.
More detailed information about the Schusteracht is available here: schusteracht.deAccording to the weather forecast, rain should remain the exception today ... sounded good, but unfortunately I cannot confirm it. Right at the beginning of the tour and throughout the day there were always heavy showers. If I hadn't submitted myself, I would have been soaking wet - but it still worked out quite well.
I really like the cobbler town of Preetz and the whole area. Lots of lakes & water, beautiful nature, a cute little town, which is not far from the state capital Kiel and the Baltic Sea is not far away either - you don't need much more.
The absolute highlight in Preetz is of course the former Benedictine convent with the monastery church - one of the most important cultural monuments in our country and a gem in the district of Plön. Another nice highlight is the Rastorf manor.

From us in Schwarzenbek this is the shortest and best route to Kühsen via the villages. A 24 km route takes a little more than an hour, even if you drive faster. But you have more of it when you drive more relaxed / slower and enjoy the beautiful nature. On the Elbe-Lübeck Canal you can easily cycle back from Kühsen to Schwarzenbek in just over two hours

Before the sudden drop in temperature at the weekend, I used the nice weather again for a tour of the villages and the beautiful nature near Gudow. In terms of route, everything was there today - from very good to poor. I still enjoyed it, but it's not a descendant tour. Especially not through the Bannauer-Kehrsener Moor. The paths are difficult to drive or there are no real paths at all, only cleared routes or they are not as available as they are on the map. You can only find out that the area is partially blocked when you have driven a long way and then discover a small prohibition sign on the tree that prohibits the onward journey. It would have been very helpful to put up these signs at the beginning of the paths and not just in the middle. Although reversing is not an option, I did not go there and looked for another path that is not prohibited.
These hardly recognizable paths are really not suitable for bicycles - they are pure bumpy hiking trails. Of course I still went through with my trekking bike, but I really can't recommend it - I also pushed a route across country through the moor because a path ended in nirvana and there was no connection to the next path. The nature is beautiful there and from the distance you could also see some deer and cranes. It is a real hunting area - if you like high seats, you can choose one here. When I finally found an exit, it was blocked by a massive and locked gate. Outside, visible from the street, there was also a sign that the area is closed. Now I know that too. Since I couldn't get out of here, I had to keep driving and luckily the next exit was completely free and there was no sign of prohibition far and wide. You can hike well in places - not cycling. Just as a tip.
I also wanted to take a look at the NSG Oldenburger See - but the way was unfortunately "blocked" - at least the prohibition sign was already at the beginning of the way.
We then continued without problems through the villages, sometimes even on the road without sensible bike paths, but also on very nice side routes without traffic.
Later there were tree root paths again, on which I was shaken properly - but I enjoy it. My personal highlights on this tour are the Gut Segrahn, the Oldenburger Wall, the church in Sterley and the old castle in Kehrsen.
 Was something different today than the 08/15 tours - at least it was not boring - on the contrary - it is fun. 😊

Today I drove around the second largest lake and the second and third highest mountain in Schleswig-Holstein. Around the 21.37 km² large lake Selenter, on the 130 m high Strezerberg and the 128 m high Pilsberg. The journey to the Pilsberg is already steep, but the one to the Strezerberg is even harder and a real challenge, but can also be mastered with a pedelec in first gear.
The tour started in Lütjenburg and led through beautiful nature around the Selenter lake with side trips to the mountains and to some bathing spots as well as to the following four manor houses:Gut Lammershagen
Good Salzau
Gut Neuhaus
Good pankerAt Gut Panker the NDR was on the air again - what was broadcast is unfortunately not known to me - but the NDR team was very active.
From Gut Panker, the punk with the colored hair etc. has spread all over the world - no, just kidding ... 😂
I had been to the Bismarck Tower in Lütjenburg for the first time on a weekend bowling trip in the late 1970s.
The Hessenstein tower on the Pilsberg was the absolute highlight for me today. For 1 € you can climb the tower and enjoy fantastic viewsHere is another link with further interesting information about the region:
ndr.de/ratgeber/reise/ostseekueste_sh/Hohwacht-Ostseebad-ohne-Hektik,hohwachterbucht2.html