Stork Tour - Cycling in the Drömling

Short description

In the Altmark region, there is hardly a stretch of land where the white stork is as widespread as in the Drömling area. A 25 km long moderately difficult circular route leads to the most romantic nesting sites.

Description

Hardly any bird has been sung about as often as Master Adebar. And there is hardly a region in our latitudes where the white stork can be found in such large numbers from spring to autumn as in the Drömling area. No wonder – the landscape with its vast meadows and ditches, its church towers and pointed gabled farmhouses is practically tailor-made for storks. And a rich menu is guaranteed as well – its cultural followers frogs and snakes are found in rare diversity in the Drömling area. The 25-kilometer circular route is sometimes difficult to navigate on certain sections and also does not offer any gastronomy, but for those seeking peace - interrupted only by the clattering of storks or the concert of frogs - and wanting to experience a scarcely developed nature, the stork tour is a good choice. The route leads to the most remarkable and romantic stork nests in the region. And of course, you can also encounter Adebar face to face on the green meadow.

Directions

We start our journey in Dannefeld. Here we encounter the namesake of this tour for the first time, the stork or also called Adebar. From April to August, the storks nest on the chimney of the former dairy in the middle of the village next to the church. From Dannefeld, we drive towards Miesterhorst until the turnoff to Buchhorst, where we turn off.

Before reaching the Friedrichskanal, we see a farm on the right and left. The one on the left has fallen into disrepair. The stork nest located on a tree reminds us of better times, but has not been occupied for years. The path leads us through a wide meadow and dam cultural landscape. After crossing the Friedrichskanal, the farms of Kahnstieg and Bleuenhorst line up like a string of pearls.

Behind the Wilhelmskanal, there is a wooden pole on a meadow to the right, which has been chosen as a domicile by storks. The path follows the road over the Ohre: sharply turning right, we head towards Buchhorst, the next waypoint. In Buchhorst, we find several stork nests, one right in front of the fire station. At the intersection, we turn right towards Röwitz and drive to the information point of the nature park administration at the Buchhorst pumping station. Inside the pumping station building, there is a small but worthseeing exhibition on the fauna and flora of the Drömling area. Telephone registration is requested. In the outdoor areas, you can sit and rest at covered seating areas. The staff of the nature park administration also provide bicycle rentals.

From here, we drive back to the Ohre and turn left without crossing it. We follow the quiet stream to the Köckter Damm (paved road). Again, we do not change sides of the Ohre, but turn left towards Köckte. After about 500 meters, we find a stork nest to the left of the road at a silo. Passing two more nests on poles of the power line following the path, we reach the most successful stork nest in the Drömling area. Almost every year, three to four young storks are raised here.

We continue along the road and cross the Friedrichskanal and Flötgraben. To the right of the path is a rest area, the Beavers Den. The stork nest in the adjacent grassland is only occasionally used by storks. We continue on the cobblestone road to Köckte, where we encounter the next storks nest on the old dairy and mill. Before the large stable facility, turn onto the field path that leads us back to the starting point of our journey, Dannefeld. This tour took us through the part of the Drömling area with the highest concentration of white stork nests.

More information

https://fvv-mieste.de/

https://fvv-mieste.de/media/files/Flyer-Storchentour.pdf

Travel information

Dannefeld is a district of the unified municipality of Hansestadt Gardelegen and is located near the B188 towards Oebisfelde. The village is about 22 km from Gardelegen and about 10 km from Mieste.

Parking information

- On-street parking (Dannefeld and Köckte)

- Parking lot at the community center in Dannefeld

Safety instructions

Unfortunately, there are no restaurants on this tour, so please ensure your own provisions.

The paths are in different conditions. In some sections, traveling may be challenging. However, the intact and scarcely developed nature should compensate for this.

Equipment

Map material, sun & rain protection, sturdy footwear