Table of contents
- Germany Marathon: Out and about in Lower Saxony – from the Harz to the sea Germany marathon: Lower Saxony
- Out and about in Lower Saxony
- North towards the coast
- Hardly any curves
- The view of the sea reconciles again
- The route through Lower Saxony
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14th pictures
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Joy curves between Weser and Harz.
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Dyke walkers on the Jade Bay, healing powers on the North Sea, on a dike trip.
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Windmill in Carolinensiel.
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Last slopes before the Wesermarsch.
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Sun-drenched avenue near Bevern – Lower Saxony offers food for every type of driver.
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Port of Neuharlingersiel.
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With the Elbe ferry from Wischhafen to Gluckstadt.
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Half-timbered and slate architecture in the Harz foreland.
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Forest lanes and wild hairpin bends in the Harz Mountains.
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Friedrichsschleuse in Harlesiel.
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Fleet ferry to Bremerhaven.
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Idyll and lots of nature in Lower Saxony.
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Germany’s second largest state not only has curves and mountains to offer.
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Map and route Lower Saxony.
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Out and about in Lower Saxony: the fourth part of the Germany Marathon
Germany Marathon: Out and about in Lower Saxony – from the Harz to the sea
Germany marathon: Lower Saxony
Germany’s second largest state offers mountains and curves in the Weserbergland and Harz Mountains, but also the endless lowlands with the maritime flair of the coasts and islands. Everything goes from scratching bends to cruising.
Dirk Schafer
07/31/2013
Out and about in Lower Saxony
You have to listen carefully to even notice it. But apart from a faint splash, I hear almost nothing. Our ferry moves across the Weser seemingly without drive. Two ropes hanging from a third keep the boat in the current and on course. The burly ferryman comes to the checkout: “That makes one euro per motorcycle.” I rummage in my wallet. The skipper points to my friend Andi’s Nuda. “What kind of one is that?” “Husqvarna.” “Never heard of it. But the way it looks, it looks pretty good. ”The man doesn’t know how right he is. But only on the other bank.
The nuda groans hoarse as we roll off the ferry. My bike, on the other hand, purrs rather innocently. That fits much better for the first few meters in Lower Saxony. Plump fields, neat farms, spruced up villages: between Holzminden and Einbeck, tranquility is at home, and ruffians like the Supermoto are out of place here. But that’s changing.
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Even before the Harz Mountains are rung in with Osterode, our route rushes through fields and groves more nimbly than the adventurous look at the map had suggested. To the right and left of us, large machines work the fields. The nuda comes off like a suppository. Maybe we should take things a little less quickly after all? When such an agricultural utility vehicle is suddenly on the road … Hardly thought, the first tractor appears in front of us! Good to know that the seventh sense is still serving.
We say goodbye to agricultural implements of all kinds in Herzberg. The route swings in wide arches along the Sieber and then penetrates deeper and deeper into the Harz Mountains. The long curves become hairpin bends, the inclines become steep climbs and isolated groups of trees become impenetrable forest. Even on the peat house, nothing remains as it was. The formerly modest place with Brockenblick is gearing up for a test of strength with alpine competition. The cash register should ring in hotels and wellness centers. This is how the old peat house becomes the peat town. A “resinified” tourism concept. Nevertheless, or perhaps because of it, filter coffee drinkers sit next to pierced mountain bikers. The Brocken takes it calmly. In any case, it stands on the other side of the national border, which was once the Iron Curtain.
North towards the coast
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Forest lanes and wild hairpin bends in the Harz Mountains.
On the way towards the coast, the land falls pretty quickly into a large slab. The Deister, as the last greeting from the low mountain range, is already wearing hazy mourning ribbons before I pilot the 800 into the Wesermarsch. Although “Wasser marsch!” Would fit better than Wesermarsch at the moment.
From one downpour I stumble into the next. In between thick fog. Andy started his way home with foresight or simply knowing the weather forecast. If at least the fog went away!
The longer I am in the murky soup, the more scary stories from childhood come to mind. Many of them played in the moor. At the time, it wasn’t clear to me what a bog actually was. But I knew for sure that people can simply sink into it if they lose their way there in fog or darkness. Then there was the photo of a bog body that I could never forget. She still looked really human. Only the fair skin had turned leathery black.
There is bog everywhere! I can’t really see it, but earlier I saw several clues through the drip visor. Now the pale fog is so thick that you can’t see 20 meters away. Does a motorcycle with a driver actually sink instantly when he goes off the road into the moor? Will walkers still hear choking cries for help before a smacking mush closes over him, that is, over me? But now I have to put an end to this hocus-pocus in my brain!
Hardly any curves
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Sun-drenched avenue near Bevern – Lower Saxony offers food for every type of driver.
I think it’s going straight ahead. The head doesn’t have to focus on anything great. No curves, no shifting, clutching, braking or accelerating. The brain waves have a free run and direct the thoughts into dead ends and one-way streets. After all: the sky is blue over East Frisia – and above all, wide. My thought center is also running normally again and is now looking forward to: finally to the sea! The North Sea under a blue sky. White ferries on the way to the islands. Seagulls screeching, fish stalls. I don’t like to be disillusioned. But here in Carolinensiel, where I landed today, the coast lacks water, the tide is low. The landscape is cut up by sluices that drain it and at the same time give the places their names: Bensersiel, Carolinensiel, Nebmersiel.
The next morning I have not yet brought the GS to a comfortable temperature, when the local road traffic authority draws my attention to a slight bend in the road with the danger sign curve. Further south you wouldn’t even notice this minimal deviation from a straight line. But even the most inconspicuous form of road bend is worth signing here.
But now to the sea! Despite the dykes, you can see it by motorcycle. And always where there is a port. However, the view is not completely untouched. Cars are not allowed on most of the offshore islands, and that’s why the parking spaces at the ferry ports are full, like the Saturday game at Schalke. There is a remarkable concentration of motorhome parking spaces right next door. An army of always identical, refrigerator-white driving containers is parked on it. It is strange that the self-sufficient mobile homes always seek protection in the group. Or their drivers have not really grasped the wonderful idea of automotive freedom after all.
The view of the sea reconciles again
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Last slopes before the Wesermarsch.
Nevertheless, I am quickly reconciled. The lighthouse of Wangerooge shimmers on the horizon next to the west tower. Swarms of seagulls rise up between the still orphaned beach chairs. Further to the east, a narrow road between the dykes leads to Augustengroden, a piece of land that has been wrested from the sea. Nevertheless, you immediately feel that this is actually an intermediate state. No more sea, but not really land either. Only when I’ve overcome the last dike inland do I feel like I’m on the mainland.
I want to take a shortcut across the Jade Bay with a ferry that leaves from Wilhelmshaven. But I did the calculation without the ferryman: “Only for bikes. With your Motourod you have to go around the outside. ”“ Can’t you make an exception? There’s no one here anyway. ”“ No, good man. You can do this by yourself. ”I see. The next ferry connection is not long in coming.
At the mouth of the Weser I want to cross over to Bremerhaven. According to the rules of the Germany marathon, I shouldn’t really do that, because Bremerhaven is already part of the state of Bremen. But first of all, I made the rules, and secondly, nobody but us knows. I miss the first ferry by seconds and have time to look around. Right at the front, before the queue, there is an extra waiting area for ambulances. You don’t have that often either: the patient has heart palpitations, the emergency doctor races towards the hospital with blue lights and first turns off the engine at the ferry: “Sorry, we still have to wait for the ferry.” Hopefully the Grim Reaper has to wait somewhere.
Then finally my ferry arrives. I roll onto the ramp behind a cyclist. The cashier, a tough guy, grumbles at me: “Didn’t you see the traffic light?” I get meek: “Which traffic light?” “That rag is gone for months!” “Which traffic light?” “Did you want to push ahead?” “I’m just after the cyclist. I let him in specially. ”The self-appointed red light supervisor collects the ferry price and leaves. As a sign that I am not going to hold anything against him, I nod gently to him on the crossing. His expression darkens: “three months”.
The rest is drowned out in the rumble of the descending ramp. There is a collection of rubber ducks on his control panel. Isn’t that tough after all.
Before I leave the second largest federal state by ferry across the Elbe, Lower Saxony hits two more knockers from the cabinet of curiosities. The largest meatball in the world was grilled in Bad Bederkesa in 2012. The Klops weighed 690 kilograms and was enough for 2100 servings. Still dazed by the idea, I roll out of Bad Frikadella and see a sign that makes me puzzled: If I turn off, I would come to Fickmuhlen. Continue straight ahead in the direction of Gluckstadt. Where would you have gone??
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Germany Marathon: Out and about in Schleswig-Holstein
Full speed ahead in Schleswig-Holstein!
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The route through Lower Saxony
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Map and route Lower Saxony.
Germany’s second largest state offers mountains and curves in the Weserbergland and Harz Mountains, but also the endless lowlands with the maritime flair of the coasts and islands. Everything goes from scratching bends to cruising.
Arrival / travel time: Polle, the starting point of the journey through Lower Saxony, lies between Hoxter and Hameln on the Weser. From Frankfurt / Main or Leipzig you need petrol for 300 kilometers to Polle. From the greater Munich area, Deutsche Bahn offers the journey to Hildesheim by car train (www.dbautozug.de). Then there are still 65 kilometers to the Weser ferry at Polle. Under normal conditions, the three warmest seasons are good for the tour. In spring and autumn it gets really cool in the Harz Mountains. An extra sweater does no harm either there or on the North Sea.
The distance: Either you have a seat or you take more time than usual: The 838-kilometer route through Lower Saxony is of the tough variety. But no wonder: Lower Saxony is the largest federal state in terms of area after Bavaria. Our route is another 250 kilometers longer than the one through North Rhine-Westphalia. And yet most of the kilometers in Lower Saxony are easier to handle than those in the neighboring state. Serious curviness is only revealed in the southern part of the country between Weser and Harz. The further north it goes, the more cruising and relaxing is the order of the day. As a rule, the sea cannot be seen along the coast due to the dykes. Those who do not want to leave the saddle can find a solution in the driveways to the ports or beaches. Otherwise, every few hundred meters there are stairs or paths to overcome the dykes on foot.
Stay: One of the classics among motorcycle hotels in Germany is the Villa Lowenherz (www.villa-loewenherz.de) in Lauenforde, managed by Martha Kuckuck. Only motorcyclists are accommodated here. The rooms start at 53 euros, there are tour tips and other promotions for bikers. The North Sea coast is peppered with overnight accommodations. Recommendation: Pension “to de blue waves” (www.to-de-blauen-wellen.de) in Carolinensiel. Double room with breakfast for 68 euros.
Activities: Among the natural wonders of Lower Saxony, the Harz Mountains and the Wadden Sea clearly stand out. However, Lower Saxony has to share both with neighboring federal states. For this, the two have meanwhile been raised to the status of national parks: www.nationalpark-harz.de and www.nationalpark-wattenmeer.de. Far less known is that the largest protected high moor in Germany lies between Esterwegen and Friesoythe. Anyone who travels the “Moor Experience Route” can still trudge through gloomy, peaty history. Anyone who has always wanted to see the inside of a submarine can go to the Wilhelmshaven Naval Museum for a dive station (www.marinemuseum.de). The entrance fee is an unsinkable 9.50 euros.
Maps / addresses: The Marco Polo Lower Saxony map on a scale of 1: 200,000 points all the way for € 8.99. Travel time: 3 days
Distance covered: 838 kilometers
Lower Saxony
Capital: Hanover
Area: 47 635 km²
Foundation: 1946
Government: SPD / Greens
Population: 7,920,000
You can find additional tour suggestions for downloading for your navigation system at maps.motorradonline.de
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