Stage 8: “Paul-Gerhardt Path” from Märkisch Buchholz - Schlepzig

This stage is the longest on the Paul Gerhardt Trail. If you’d like to take your time, you can easily split it over two days. The trail takes you past plenty of sights worth seeing.

From Märkisch Buchholz, the gateway to the Spreewald, the route first takes you through the Köthener Heide. The glistening heathland lakes line the path, lending this section a special sense of tranquillity. Schwanensee, with its rest hut, offers a lovely spot for a break. Anyone wishing to gain a little more altitude should plan a short detour to the Wehlaberg. From the 144-metre-high viewpoint, the view stretches far across the landscape of the Dahme-Heideseen Nature Park and into the Spreewald Biosphere Reserve.

Before reaching Leibsch, the landscape changes noticeably. The water draws nearer, and meadows and streams dominate the scene – you have reached the Spreewald. At the same time, you encounter a region that is still shaped today by its Sorbian-Wendish history. If you walk through the villages with an eye for detail, you will discover traces of this centuries-old culture in many places. The stage destination, Schlepzig, is one of the most beautiful villages in the Spreewald. Amidst streams, bridges and old farmsteads, you can round off the day in a relaxed manner. Particularly worth seeing are the Weidendom – a living structure made of willow – and the Farming Museum.

Length (duration): 24 kilometres (6 hours)

Route sign: Signets and hiking signs of the Paul-Gerhardt path

Route: The route takes you mostly along natural ground through large woodland areas along the Dahme flood canal, past the Köthener Heideseen lakes and into the Spreewald.

Trail conditions: 

75% natural paths, 5% partially paved and 20% of the paths have a hard surface.

Points of interest along the route:

Nature: Forests, open wide country, different kinds of waters, Köthener Heideseen lakes, observation tower on the Wehlaberg (a little off-route), Weidendom Schlepzig willow dome.

Culture: Leibsch needle weir: Museum weir with information panels, Schlepzig agricultural museum, Schelpzig Huttendenkmal memorial.

By public transport:

Start: Märkisch Buchholz has a bus connection to Königs Wusterhausen.

Finish: There is a bus from Schlepzig to Lübben.

All locations are within the VBB regional tariff zone.

How to get there by car: There is parking at the start and finish, but you cannot drive from the finish back to the starting point.

Recommended maps/Literature:

Rad- und Wanderkarte Unterspreewald Dahme-Heideseen, Verlag PUBLICPRESS; ISBN 978-3-7473-0278-1

Reschke, Manfred: Paul-Gerhardt-Weg “Natur und Kultur zwischen Berlin und Spreewald”, Trescher-Verlag; 1. Auflage 2017, 168 Seiten, 80 Fotos, 25 Karten und Stadtpläne, farbige Klappkarten, ISBN 978-3-89794-354-4

Find inspiration in the diary specifically published for this trail. The tourist information centres along the way give you hiking stickers for each completed stage, which you can stick in your diary. They also give you song sheets of the poet’s most famous songs.

You can find all souvenirs of the Paul-Gerhardt path to www.dahme-seenland.de/service/souvenirs/

Possible combinations/connection to other hiking trails:

66-Lakes Hiking Trail - Circular trail of Schlepzig and surroundings