The best family-friendly hikes and walks around Kettwiger Stausee

Beautiful historic archway

Historic site, which was also used during the Nazi era.

Lake Kettwig, located in the southern part of the Essen district of Kettwig, was built by the Ruhrverband (Ruhr Association) between 1940 and 1950, after the Hengsen Reservoir and before Lake Kemnade, as the penultimate of the six Ruhr reservoirs. Lake Kettwig is the last reservoir downstream on the Ruhr River; it lies approximately six kilometers beyond the largest, Lake Baldeney. See: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kettwiger_See

The gate of Landsberg Castle in Ratingen (near Essen) is a popular starting point for hikes through the surrounding forests in the Klusenbach Valley, often in combination with a visit to Hugenpoet Castle. The castle itself, a former fortress dating back to the 13th century, is known for its 33-meter-high keep, is now a ThyssenKrupp training center, and is not open to the public for interior tours.

The Oefter Bach is a 4.8 km long, orographically left tributary of the Ruhr River in North Rhine-Westphalia, flowing along the bottom of a deeply incised valley. The actual floodplain is only between forty and one hundred meters wide. Moisture-loving stands of alder and poplar extend across the valley floor. The rather steep valley slopes are predominantly covered with beech, pedunculate oak, and other tree species, some of which are 120 to 150 years old. Numerous small side valleys with narrow streams feed the Oefter Bach.

In the course of the Reformation, Protestant Christians in Linnep gathered in the castle, the residence of their patron, until 1684. From 1684 onwards, the first church services could be held in their own church on a property near the castle, which the then lord of the castle, Freiherr Vincent Schott von Isselstein, donated to the community. Frequent changes of ownership occurred from 1731 onwards. In 1855, the castle was bought by Ferdinand Reichsgraf von Spee, younger brother of the Count at Schloss Heltorf, and the associated forest area was enlarged to over 300 hectares. Until the 1990s, the archive of the Mettmann district was located in the newest castle wing. The castle was the private residence of the farmer and long-time local CDU politician Clemens Graf von Spee (1929–2011) and his family. In 2008, Isabella and Wilderich Freiherr von Ketteler took over Schloss Linnep. Since 2010, it has been possible to get married there civilly. See: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schloss_Linnep

Southwest of the castle stands the simple hall church of Linnep Forest Church, consecrated in 1684 and one of the oldest Reformed churches in the Rhineland. Next to it is the half-timbered building of the former castle mill, built on the Hummelsbach stream, which served as an inn for many years and is now part of the riding stables behind it. Linnep House (or Lennep) was the core of the Linnep estate until 1802. The knights and lords of Linnep (Linepe, Lynepe) owned the castle until 1461. A bastard line developed into the still-flourishing Dutch noble family Van Lennep. Through the marriage on September 29, 1461, of Eva (born around 1420; died 1483), heiress of Dietrich von Linnep and Elisabeth von Sayn, to Friedrich von Neuenahr-Alpen, the estate passed to the Counts of Limburg. From 1582 onwards, the baronial family von Isselstein from the House of Egmond, who belonged to the Reformed confession, lived in Linnep House, initially as a pledge, then from 1643 hereditarily through purchase.

Linnep Castle, or more commonly called Linnep House, is a moated castle located south-southeast of the Breitscheid district of Ratingen in the Mettmann district of North Rhine-Westphalia. The knight's seat is first mentioned around 1090–1120 in a document from Kaiserswerth Abbey as "linepo," and again in 1093 in a document from Werden Abbey, referring to Wernherus de linepe. The construction of the older parts of the castle dates back to the 12th century. In 1769, a new building was erected on the site of the old castle, incorporating the round tower, likely 1000 years old, with its pointed roof, and the curtain wall from the original structure. Further additions were made after 1855. The very compact complex is surrounded by a large moat through which the small Hummelsbach stream flows. Access to the castle today is via a sweeping staircase over the moat. The courtyard in front is fortified as an outer bailey and consists of a gatehouse with outbuildings.