Top 20 Natural Monuments around Stemwede

The approximately 100-meter-long wooden footbridge leads into the reed zone and pasture belt of the "Hohe Sieben" nature reserve, which also features a birdwatching station. It's worth parking your bike here for a while and exploring the surrounding nature on foot. You certainly won't regret it and will be glad you took a short break here afterwards. 👋😉 https://willkommen.dwl.duemmer.de/de/duemmer/streaming/detail/POI/p_100054347/schilferlebnissteg

European bird sanctuary with rewetted wet grassland, important breeding area for meadow birds and resting area for geese.

Neolithic era At the end of the second settlement phase of Hüde I - around 3300 to 3200 BC. BC - people from a different culture built the moorland settlement Hunte 1 on a slightly rising hill on the Hunte, which flows north of the Dümmer. This place was discovered in 1934 when the Hunte was being straightened and was systematically excavated between 1938 and 1940 by Hans Reinerth, then head of the Reich Office for Prehistory. In 2000, the excavation documents and found material scattered during the Second World War were reassembled and scientifically evaluated as part of a research project at the Lower Saxony State Museum in Hanover.

Paleolithic era The oldest human presence on the Dümmer so far is proven by a harpoon tip that was fished out of the Dümmer in 1887. It was made by people of the Paleolithic period who hunted the reindeer in the Dümmer lowlands in the then treeless tundra of the Bölling Interstadial of the Vistula Ice Age 15,000 years ago. With the rise in temperatures around 12,000 years ago, nature changed on the Dümmer: birch and pine forests expanded, more hardwoods were added, and large and small game became native - an ideal basis for life for the people of the Mesolithic. A barbed tip, perhaps a harpoon tip - found near Lemförde in 1973 - confirms the presence of these Mesolithic people as early as the end of the Vistula Ice Age, because using the C14 method the tip was dated to 11,000 years before our time.

Creation of the Dümmersedit The Dümmer formed around 12,000 years ago and has a similar origin story to the Steinhuder Meer: Until now, it was assumed that the Dümmer was a deflation trough. However, the surrounding sands (dunes) are not sufficient to interpret the formation as a deflation trough. It is now assumed that the Dümmer lake basin was formed by the formation of ice lenses during the Vistula glaciation. The glaciation of this last ice age did not extend into this region, but the landscape was periglacial, i.e. formed as a cold steppe. This ice lens theory was arrived at through studies of the periglacial area in Canada. However, this phenomenon should not be confused with the so-called pingos.

The Dümmer, also referred to as Dümmer Lake on official signposts, is a 12.4 km² large and up to 1.4 m deep lake in the west of the northern German lowlands in the Diepholz district of Lower Saxony (Germany). It lies in the triangle between the towns and cities of Lemförde, Damme and Diepholz and is traversed by the Hunte.

Dümmer is the name of a former nature reserve in the Lower Saxony municipalities of Lembruch and Hüde in the Altes Amt Lemförde municipality in the Diepholz district, the town of Damme in the Vechta district and the municipality of Bohmte in the Osnabrück district.

Limberg Castle looks back on a long and eventful history. It was probably founded in Widukind's time and was owned by the Bishop of Minden 1000 years ago. Limberg Castle has only been officially documented since 1319 and was owned by the Counts of Ravensberg and was one of the four border castles in the Ravensberg region, of which the Sparrenburg in Bielefeld is probably the most famous. The count's house died out in 1346, but the county of Ravensberg remained for a long time under the heirs of the House of Jülich-Berg. The castle changed hands several times, and their names are often found in the region (von dem Bussche, Schloen, Gesmold or Ledebur). Of course, there were also some border disputes. The castle, which has since fallen into disrepair, was approved for demolition in 1695, so that the foundations can still be seen today. Only the keep was preserved and was actually used as a prison for some time. Today, it is the keep that is the most striking feature of the ruins of Limberg Castle. If you like, you can borrow a key from the tourist information office. Despite the fact that most of the castle has disappeared, they really make every effort to present the castle ruins in the best possible way. The grounds are not only extremely well maintained, but are also well signposted. The castle's eventful history alone is described on 4 information boards. There is also further information on the various parts of the building. 2 very interesting audio contributions can also be accessed via QR code! And all of this in a comfortable rest area! There are many castle ruins in this region, but for me, Limberg Castle is always one of the most beautiful due to its state of preservation and atmosphere! Just relax and take in the long history of the castle. PS: In the guest house you can see a model of the castle complex, showing how it is supposed to have looked in its full size.