beech forest and pine forests, »mountains« and ravines, bogs, fields, meadows, hedges and even an inland dune. Melting water in the Ice Age washed out the Buckower Rinne which runs through the nature park. In the »Buckower Kes- sel« ( Kettle) there is the Schermützelsee lake which covers 146 hectares and is 40 metres deep. Just one and a half kilometres away the 129 metre hill, the »Krugberg«, rises The rushes through round 25 kilometres of the nature cultivation remain intact, the management of the nature park up. In the Pritzhagen Hills there are two lakes – the Kleiner Fuel Station for Birds park and drops 43 metres in height. Once it used to drive many organises contractual nature conservation, such as the mowing Tornowsee and the Großer Tornowsee – which is just 250 mill wheels. They have now largely disappeared. The mill ponds of the water meadow to protect orchids, grazing to maintain metres apart and have a difference in height of 16.5 metres. Almost all of the nature park is a European bird reserve. remain, however: a hurdle which cannot be crossed, not just the species-rich dry grass and the planting of hedges, which This is a landscape with many contours, where at every turn Among the over 140 species of breeding birds which have by migrating fish species. Eight dams were made passable again provides all-round ecology that shapes the landscape in many the Ice Age is within reach: with the boulders which have been been counted, there are the »big ones«: both black and white through the use of »fish stairs«, among other things. Around 20 areas. Intervention by humans is not necessary everywhere: Little Switzerland transported here by glaciers which, among other things, have storks, both red and black kites, honey buzzards, white-tailed species of fish can be found teeming between the Pritzhagen and such as in alder and ash forests in the Stobbertal nature con- been used to build roads and houses (as well as churches), eagles and common cranes. Smaller species such as both the When you think of »Switzerland« you think of peaks, ravines Eichendorf mills alone, among which are rare examples such as servation area, the deciduous forests by the Schermützelsee with the mighty glacial erratics such as the »Bollersdorfer black and middle spotted woodpeckers, green sandpipers or and views across the countryside. The Switzerland chub, the European bitterling, European weather loach, spined loach lake, the mature forest in the Tiergarten nature conservation Stein« or deeply cut meltwater channels, such as the Silber­ barred warbler also belong to the area and diversity of habitat. Nature Park has all this to offer – a good 30 kilometres from and gudgeon. It used to be just six species. In the nature park area, in the Silberkehle and the Wolfsschlucht. Here in the kehle, Buchenkehle and Wolfsschlucht, which are among the In a lakeland area of almost 300 hectares from Altfriedland to the eastern edge of . Even if the peaks are not as high the beaver has now joined the otter, the water shrew and the rest. apparent disorderliness you can make out the natural order most idyllic areas in the nature park. Karlsdorf up to 40,000 bean and white-fronted geese rest here and the ravines (also called gorges) are not so deep: the ups which supports the lives of many species. There are beautiful broad views across the countryside from in the autumn. Common terns, black-headed and silver gulls and downs of some routes are as breathtaking as the beauty of the panorama path and from the Bollersdorfer Höhe to the equally belong to the scenery, which can be easily seen from Cultivated Landscape Ministry of Environment, Health and Consumer Protection of the Federal State of the landscape. It has been primarily shaped by the last Ice Age Brandenburg Schermützelsee lake, from the Krugberg and Dachsberg in the the observation tower, possibly with the aid of binoculars. which came to an end here around 12,000 years ago. There are Meets Wilderness Editors: Brandenburg State Office of Environment, Health and Consumer Protection, Pritzhagen Hills, from the viewpoint at Münchehofe across the Fishing also takes place here and the fisherman’s festival is Office of Press and Public Relations also broad views across the countryside and you can hear an 14476 Potsdam, OT Groß Glienicke, Seeburger Chaussee 2, Tel. (03 32 01) 4 22 - 0 Klobichsee lake or from the Galgenberg hill near Reichenberg celebrated in August every year in Altfriedland. echo can be heard at the »Kleiner Tornowsee« lake. 160 years A good third of the area of the nature park is forest: with a and Märkische Schweiz Nature Park across to the wide fields of . Photographs: Bausewein, Klaeber, Klinger, Liebke, Rasmus, Naturwacht Brandenburg ago the hilly area got its name as city dwellers in search of re- noticeably high population of elm, copper beech, common Map: Pro Line Concept, Berlin laxation and fresh air increasingly move into the countryside. Stairs for Fish hornbeam, common oak, sessile oak ... and deadwood. In the Design/creation: Power DesignThing GmbH Printed by: Landesvermessung und Geobasisinformation Brandenburg Since this time almost 70 landscapes in have been Buckower Kessel, a large basin with lakes and ravines, mist As of: September 2013 given the attractive epithet of a dream landscape: Switzerland. The clear, oxygenrich Stobber is the central flowing water in the and high humidity are often prevalent: it is a good place for The nature park established under the National Park Programme nature park. It rises up in the , flows from the south the copper beech. Buckow is derived from the Slavonic word of the last East German government is, with 205 square kilome- west to the north east through the lakes of the Buckower Kessel. »buk« meaning copper beech. The manor system which once tres, the smallest yet »longest-serving« in the State of Branden- Marsh areas, remnants of riparian forests, and headwaters dominated today’s nature park with relatively large fields is Märkische Schweiz burg, which today has a total of 15 large conservation areas. line its largely natural course. It is a habitat which has become one of the reasons for the unspoilt views across the country- It is situated in the district of Märkisch-Oderland between the increasingly rare for the »heraldic animal« of the nature park: side in many places. Things are rather different in the narrow Nature Park of , Müncheberg and , well the common club-tail (club-tail dragonfly), one of 53 species Buckower Kessel, where the ’s farmers only cultivated known for its Schinkel-designed buildings and Lenné park. In just of the dragonfly which have been verified as living in the area. small areas of land. So it was that the Buckow vineyards and a small area almost all types of landscape can be found: lakes The once common species is heavily endangered not just in the field lots at Fontaneweg, for example, came about. So Landesamt für Umwelt, Naturpark Nationale and kettle ponds, springs and streams, fish ponds and ditches, Germany, even if their numbers are starting to recover. that these cultivated landscapes which came about through Gesundheit und Verbraucherschutz Märkische Schweiz Naturlandschaften TF Katharinenhof Metzdorf NP Herzhorn Uckermärkische BR Flusslandschaft NemitzRheinsbergNP Seen NLP Elbe-Brandenburg Stechlin- BR Unteres Ruppiner Land Schorfheide- Odertal Chorin NP Prötzel NeufriedlandNe NP Barnim Multitasking: For visitors Bernau Reichenow West- NP and people who live in the havelland Märkische BERLIN Schweiz Europäisches nature park, fishermen and Potsdam Gottesgabe Vogelschutz- NP gebiet Dahme- Prädikow Batzlow 167 e farmers the staff of the NP NP e Heideseen rs Hoher Nuthe- NP e t Nature Watch (Naturwacht) Fläming Nieplitz Schlaubetal s

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BR K Altfriedland are point of contact. They Spreewald Ihlow e NLP = national park (Nationalpark) NP e Großschutzgebiete S manage biotope and species BR = biosphere reserve Niederlausitzer S r Märkische Schweiz o in Brandenburg Landrücken Ringenwalde e p

(Biosphärenreservat) PLACE OFFERINGS Accommodation/inns information Tourist Bathing Environmental facilities education heritage Museums/local museums/exhibitions tz h NP e conservation projects, as NP = nature park (Naturpark) ie i Nature Park was awarded NLP = Nationalpark Niederlausitzer n Lettinsee K f BR = Biosphärenreservat Heidelandschaft li Altfriedland • • • • well as carrying out constant e Large Nature Reserves in ß the title of a quality NP = Naturpark Karlsdorf Bollersdorf • • monitoring of rare species Brandenburg nature park in 2007. Reichenberg Buckow • • • • • Dolgensee such as beavers, otters and Grunow Garzau • • • bats, offering guided walks Garzin • Ernsthof and looking after the junior TF Hermersdorf • Neuhardenberg rangers, the »Swiss Bears«. Ihlow • Pritzhagen Julianenhof • Klosterdorff Stafsee r S Julianenhof e Müncheberg • • • • b b o Münchehof • • • t S Neuhardenberg • • • “… like velvet on the lungs” Strausberg Bollersdorf Kl. und Gr. R1 Tornowsee Obersdorf • • Pritzhagen • The black woodpecker is S NSG TF Wulkow ee Stobbertal Prötzel • • The small town of Buckow, which today has around 1,700 a characteristic species of ls Hohensteinenstein e z Treuenhof t Hermersdorf Reichenberg • natural forests. Here there ü L Drei Eichen inhabitants and was the first Kneipp health resort in the State m r Ringenwalde • e are, for example, sufficient Hasenholz h c Ruhlsdorf • of Brandenburg, received the highest praise from the personal Ruhlsdorfer S S S S old trees to make nesting, See Buckow • • • • • doctor to Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV in 1854: »Majesty, sleeping and hiding holes. NSG Birkensee Werder • Ruhlsdorfer Münchehofe Wherever the black wood- Gladowshöhe Bruch Buckow is like velvet on the lungs«. With the opening of Liebenhof Klobich- NSG see R1 Hintersee pecker is, numerous new R1 NSG the Buckow narrow-gauge railway on the Berlin-Küstrin line, Gartzsee Klobich- Märkische Schweiz nature Märkische Schweiz tenants are not far behind, see Waldsievers- Park, Management, Culture and Tourism Office and increasing numbers of people were able to experience the Bergschäferei dorf Vorder- bats for example. Garzin »Schweizer Haus« Visitor Centre, NSG Haussee the gallery »Zum Alten Warmbad« »velvet on the lungs«: from 1897 the number of day trippers Tiergarten Hermersdorf- Natur watch Sebastian-Kneipp-Weg 1, 15377 Buckow Obersdorf Gr. Lindenstraße 33, 15377 Buckow Tel. (03 34 33) 5 75 00 o. 6 59 82, soared. Besides , Egon Erwin Kisch, Bertolt Deadwood: an all-rounder. Däbersee Trebnitz Fax 5 77 19 Stobber Kl. Däbersee Nature Park management tel.: Depending on the phase of h Dahmsdorf touristinfo@-maerkische-schweiz.de Brecht, and Helene Weigel among others came here. The Garzau (03 34 33) 1 58-40, Fax -42 decomposition, it is a supply www.maerkischeschweiz.eu annual summer literature festival in the Brecht-Weigel House Kl. Visitor centre tel.: (03 34 33) 1 58-41 of insects for woodpeck- Schlagenthinsee Visitor centre opening hours: Müncheberg local information in Buckow, once their summer residence, ties into the area’s ers and others, offers them Wasserscheide Werder tägl. 10 – 16 Uhr a place to make a home, Nordsee – Ostsee Brigittenhof in the »Torwächterhäuschen« important past. However, in Brandenburg Switzerland there np-maerkische-schweiz@lugv. Ernst-Thälmann-Str. 101, NSG Gr. offers wild bees a hatchery, ß brandenburg.de Rehfelde- ie Gumnitz und Schlagenthin- JahnsJah felde 15374 Müncheberg is not just good air and literature, but also lots to see: from Dorf fl R o t e s L u c Gr. Schlagenthinsee see the common toad a place to n Marienfeld www.np-ms.brandenburg.de le Tel. (03 34 32) 7 09 31, Fax 8 11 43 h Natura Trail Altfriedland which has the remains of a Cistercian convent to overwinter, shelter for small ü [email protected] M www.naturfreunde- Tel./Fax Naturwacht: (03 34 33) 60 63 BoundaryGrenze Naturpark of the Märkische Märkische Schweiz Schweiz Nature Park www.stadt-muencheberg.de Ihlow with its »open farms« and masterly fieldstone construc- mammals, and food in the 1 brandenburg.de [email protected] Zinndorf form of mushrooms. The L NatureNaturschutzgebiet conservation (NSG)area www.naturwacht.de Waldsieversdorf Culture, Exhibition tions – whether church, farmhouse or wall – which almost list of species which live off Müncheberg Nature Park Route InformationInformation Naturschutz-Nature conservation and Tourism Centre Informationinformation www.wanderbares- Verein Langes Haus everywhere shape the appearance of localities in nature park. deadwood or in it ranges 5 Wilhelm-Pieck-Straße 23, Neuenhagen – deutschland.de Altfriedland e.V. from ants to tinder fungus. Lichtenow- CycleRadwanderwege routes 15377 Waldsieversdorf Brandenburg Switzerland has long been an easily-accessible Dorf Altfriedland Hauptstraße 23 d, 15320 Neuhardenberg TF »RadwanderwegTheodor Fontane« Tel. (03 34 33) 15 77 82, Fax 15 77 85 And what is left over from Stobber Philippinenhof Trebnitz – Möglin Julianenhof OT Altfriedland paradise for walkers. Since 2010 it has been possible to get to cycle„Theodor route Fontane“ [email protected] the deadwood? Nutrients for LehrpfadEducational im trail in the Bat Museum Tel. (03 34 76) 5 09 57 R1 Cycle route 1 L www.waldsieversdorf.info know the area on the 17 km long Natura Trail and the 21 km the forest. 1/5 Radwanderweg 1 MünchebergerMüncheberg forest Stadtforst www.fledermausmuseum- Tourist information and exhibition NaturerlebnispfadBehlendorf julianenhof.de/ »Altfriedland local history« Eggersdorf AreaGebietswanderwege trail L Drei Eichen nature trail long certified Brandenburg Switzerland Nature Park Route. Drei Eichen (Visitation by prior appointment)

R1 0 5 km N