The best family-friendly hikes and walks around Wesseling

Since the old Rhine arm is no longer cultivated by anglers, nature is gradually reclaiming the area. The original two ponds appear increasingly wild; despite lively bicycle and foot traffic, you can linger and observe the odd animal.

The core of St. Lucy's Chapel dates back to the 13th century and belonged to a farmstead, the present-day Sionite Farmstead, which passed from Siegburg Abbey to the Cistercian convent of Ophoven before the mid-13th century. As early as 1250, the farmstead and chapel came into the possession of the Cologne monastery of Sion, where they remained until secularization at the beginning of the 19th century. (Source: Wikipedia) The chapel is a listed building and archaeological monument.

The Dickopsbach stream originates in Phantasialand and feeds the Entenfang (duck pond) with water.

For information about the Entenfang hunting lodge, see e.g. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jagdschloss_Entenfang

"The Lülsdorfer Weiden Nature Reserve is located within the town of Niederkassel in the Rhein-Sieg district of North Rhine-Westphalia. The area extends northwest of Lülsdorf, a district of Niederkassel, along the west-flowing Rhine..." FURTHER INFORMATION: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%BClsdorfer_Weiden https://nsg.naturschutzinformationen.nrw.de/nsg/de/fachinfo/gebiete/gesamt/SU_020 https://www.wms.nrw.de/html/7680100/SU-020

Who actually measured the Rhine? – Of Myrameter Stones and Kilometers of Rivers "... Waterways have always been the most important transport routes. Because boatmen were at the mercy of the whims of the great rivers when navigating them, canals were built as early as the 6th century BC, and in Europe, the straightening of major rivers began in the 17th century. The Rhine, in particular, with its shallows, loops, and tributaries, posed difficulties for the transport industry, especially for cargo ships. Towpaths had been built almost everywhere from Basel to Rotterdam, along which the horses pulled these lighters walked. To shorten the route and make the Rhine navigable all the way down to Basel, the Rhine River Construction Administration was founded in Koblenz in 1815. Under the leadership of Rhine River Construction Director Eduard Nobiling, it was responsible for this mammoth task. After the successful straightening of the Upper Rhine, the Rhine began to be precisely surveyed in 1864. This had been ordered by the The Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine (CCNR) was founded in 1815, the world's first international organization, still in existence today, and in which all the Rhine riparian states are represented. The idea was to erect stones as markers every 10,000 meters between the (middle) Basel Rhine Bridge and the estuary near Rotterdam, the so-called "myriameter stones." As is well known, the Rhine divides near Millingen, on what is now the German-Dutch border, into the Waal and the Nederrijn, later known as the Lek. The reference point for the myriameter stones was in the middle of the (old) port of Rotterdam; today, the mouth of the Lek behind Hoek van Holland is considered the measuring point. Because the surveying of the Rhine was primarily a project of the states of Baden, Hesse, and Prussia at the time, the Netherlands did not participate. Therefore, myriameter stones only existed between Basel and Rees. ..." https://www.rhein-magazin-duesseldorf.de/wer-hat-eigentlich-den-rhein-ausgemessen-von-myrametersteinen-und-stromkilometern/?cn-reloaded=1

<< The Parish Church of St. Germanus - the "Wesseling Cathedral" >> "As early as the 9th century, a parish church dedicated to St. Germanus of Auxerre stood in "Niederwesseling," about 150 meters north of the current parish church site. This church building, rebuilt, repaired, and expanded several times over the centuries, had finally become too small and dilapidated for the rapidly growing congregation by the second half of the 19th century. Therefore, the new parish church was built on the present site between 1892 and 1894 in the Neo-Romanesque style and consecrated in 1894 by the Auxiliary Bishop of Cologne, Dr. Hermann-Joseph Schmitz. The brick church with its two-tower façade is 42 meters long and 21 meters wide. It consists of a main aisle and two side aisles with a non-projecting transept and a semicircular apse. Most recently, in 2013, the interior of the church was completely renovated and given its current appearance. color scheme..." CONTINUATION and MORE INFORMATION: https://www.kkiw.de/wir-fuer-sie/kirchen/st.-germanus/index.html

A very nice, quiet path for a long walk.