Easy hikes and walks in Olefer Kirchenwald

Nice little hut. A good shelter that is very clean

The right place for a break, dry and sheltered from the wind.

The interior of the church is a place for reflection for everyone.

Said to be the cradle of Mannesmann. A lot of steel

"John of Nepomuk or John of Pomuk (Latin: Joannes de Pomuk, Czech: Jan Nepomucký or Jan z Pomuka, * c. 1350 in Pomuk near Pilsen; † March 20, 1393 in Prague) was a Bohemian priest and martyr. He was canonized by Pope Benedict XIII in 1729 and is considered the "bridge saint" and patron of the seal of confession. Along with crosses and depictions of the Virgin Mary, sculptures of Saint Nepomuk are the most commonly found Christian stone figures outside of church buildings in the open countryside in Catholic areas of southern Germany, Bohemia, Moravia, and Austria. Statues of the saint are often found on or next to bridges. The most famous of these, created by Johann Brokoff in 1683, is located on Prague's Charles Bridge at the spot where the saint was thrown into the Vltava River. " https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Nepomuk "... John of Nepomuk lived from about 1350 to 1393. He died as punishment by being thrown from the Charles Bridge into the Vltava River and drowned. As a bridge saint, his statue stands on many bridges in Europe. ..." 👉 Life and work of John of Nepomuk and further information: https://www.erzbistum-koeln.de/presse_und_medien/magazin/Johannes-Nepomuk-der-Brueckenheilige

The town center of Olef, with its half-timbered houses, has been lovingly restored. However, I almost missed it because the Eifelsteig trail no longer leads through it. A local resident tells me that the bridge leading directly to the town center was swept away during the flood and won't be replaced until next year.

When a hiker or walker passes by here from the direction of the village of Olef (on the Olef River), they initially see only a hollow in the hillside, surmounted by the top of a wooden cross. Only immediately before it does it become apparent that this is not one of the usual small sacred monuments in the form of a wayside cross, but rather the local memorial to the victims of the two World Wars, which Nierfeld also suffered between 1914 and 1918 and 1939 and 1945.

In front of the facade of a well-maintained half-timbered house, the hiker/walker passes a wooden wayside cross that extends above the ground floor. The pale body of the crucified Christ stands out clearly against the dark wood of the longitudinal beam. Pope Benedict XVI expressed the following thoughts during the Stations of the Cross meditation (Good Friday 2010) in the Colosseum in Rome, which may also be of interest here: "He [Jesus Christ] knows that his death becomes the source of life, just as the seed must break open in the earth for the plant to grow: 'Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit' (John 12:24). Jesus is the grain of wheat that falls into the earth, is torn open, breaks open, dies, and can therefore bear fruit. Since the day Christ was lifted up on the cross, the cross—a seemingly symbol of abandonment, loneliness, and failure—has become a new beginning: from the depths of death rises the promise of eternal life. The triumphant splendor of Easter morning already shines on the cross. (Pope Benedict XVI)