Niesetalweg

The start of the Niesetalweg was Schwalenberg, where you can easily park your car 😉 The Niesetalweg, which is always well signposted, starts directly in Schwalenberg's beautiful market street with its great half-timbered houses 🤩 The path up to the castle and further through forests and meadows. Sometimes you cross a street, only to be back in nature again. The path is often just a path, but is always easy to see. But you should wear waterproof shoes on dewy days, otherwise your feet will get wet 👣 😉. There are always beautiful views, including the Köterberg. When you arrive in Marienmünster, you should take the time to pay a visit to the abbey. Or you can stop off at the Klosterkrug to fortify yourself (as long as you're not on vacation 🙈). The remaining kilometers now lead mainly between fields and up to Schwalenberg again. Here too, various restaurants invite you to finish your hike 😃

The Niesebach stream, from which the area takes its name, meanders from its source at Köterberg to the Emmer River, into which it flows. The path winds through a wide, hilly landscape, over and around mountains. The meadow paths are completely buried under snow. In some places, the white blanket lies 20 cm deep, its surface crusted. More and more often, we have to break trail with our own feet. This is arduous; each step requires lifting at least 15 cm to move forward. Helmut usually goes first, and I try to follow in his footsteps. However, since my stride isn't long enough, I pay the price: In the evening, I'm wracked with terrible leg cramps on the sofa! We decide to skip the loop around Schwalenberg Castle! We see several flocks of cranes on their way back north. In the afternoon, the sun peeks out a bit – which helps us persevere on this difficult terrain. I wouldn't recommend this route in snow – spring, summer, or autumn would be a better choice.

Yesterday the Niesetalweg was on our plan - a 25 km long quality hiking trail that connects Münsterbrock, Schwalenberg and Kollerbeck ☺️ We started at the free parking lot of the Marienmünster Abbey, this is also where the official entrance is, clockwise. 😊 The Niesetalweg is known for its varied hiking trails and yes, we can confirm that. 🥰 Simple dirt roads, short asphalted stretches, narrow forest paths, great paths along meadows, small stream crossings, magnificent views and always with a decent amount of altitude, some of which were quite tough 🥵🙈 You're pretty out of practice when you because of the wet weather, couldn't go on a big tour for more than four weeks.. 🫣 We were particularly impressed by the little town of Schwalenberg! 🥺 If you love half-timbered houses, small alleys and cobblestones, you've come to the right place! 😍 The way up towards the castle was also super nice. With the stairs, the narrow path up and the view of the roofs of the city, all three of us had a déjà vu: Stolberg in the Harz Mountains! 🤩 Aaund: the tourist information was open, which is why I stocked up on new information material 🫶🏼 Another highlight: picking fresh wild berries, mhhm! 🤤 The blackberries were super delicious! 👌🏼 However, what we didn't like was that there were now and then (estimated 5-6 pieces) sections of track that were overgrown. For an officially signposted path, a quality hiking trail borderline! 😬 And the signage was also questionable. Sometimes signs were completely missing (probably unscrewed), overgrown or simply no longer available because the Baim didn't survive the last storm. 🤷🏼‍♀️ After seven hours we were back at the parking lot and strengthened ourselves again directly in the restaurant of the abbey 💪🏼🤤

The way to Schwalenberg Castle is really beautiful with many great paths and small grass field paths with a wide view. At the castle we got coffee and cake, We continued on less shady and partly paved paths back to the abbey. 💚🌸🌳

We walked the path in the opposite direction - so there was pizza in Schwalenberg at noon. Disadvantage: In the end it was the shorter part with 8 kilometers, but I personally liked the first part better (15 kilometers). Next time I would do the path again in the recommended direction. ☺️

Today I explored a new part of the Lipperland region 😃 a truly wonderful "field-forest-meadow trail." It has everything from wide to narrow paths. ☺ I wish I had a lawn trimmer handy on some of the narrow paths. 🤣 The view of the surrounding landscape was fantastic. With the cow pastures, I felt like I was in the Allgäu. 😍

My conclusion right away: A great tour, very scenic and varied 👌, often on natural ground (about 50% of the route!). Only 15% are on asphalt or pavement - this makes the Niesetalweg an excellent hiking experience! 👍 Some narrow paths are so unspoilt that at km 25.8 I even accepted a short detour via the nearby district road due to heavy thorn growth. Therefore, however, also a restriction: 👉 I recommend only doing this hike in dry weather 🌞 and on solid ground, otherwise your feet 👣 and pants are guaranteed to be wet, especially on the meadow sections! 💦😬 🐻****************************************🐻 https://www.komoot.de/tour/311779407 https://www.komoot.de/user/teutoburgerwald A constant change between forest, fields and beautiful meadows make the approximately 25-kilometer circular hike in the upper Niesetal an experience that lets you completely forget everyday life. Look forward to lush greenery, rippling water on the Niese stream and pure nature peppered with a few meters of altitude. It starts at the Marienmünster Abbey and from there directly to wide fields. Take a deep breath and enjoy the fresh, aromatic air as you walk past the open ground at the foot of the Münsterbrocker and Hermeskeberg. The tour takes you through the small town of Born and north to Schwalenberg. A lot of culture and history awaits you here with the impressive, around 450-year-old town hall in half-timbered style and detailed sculptures. Before you dive into the picturesque nature reserve of the Schwalenberger Forest, you walk around the castle of the same name, which sits majestically on a hill. A detour to the old walls is worth it just because of the fantastic view. On soft paths in the fragrant mixed forest, you'll soon be back in the middle of nature. Small streams run through the nature reserve and are your constant companions. Then the forest opens up and reveals a view of the unique Niesetalaue. The stream meanders leisurely along your path. You disappear again into the forest via the Hellberg path, walk over romantic wooden footbridges and end the tour where you started it: at the magnificent Marienmünster Abbey. February 9, 2021 https://www.teutoburgerwald.de/wandern-radfahren/wanderregion/ 🐻****************************************🐻 Arrival and departure with the 🚌 Public transport 🚃 on this tour: + Abbey, Marienmünster

Absolutely amazing discovery, the trail is a real highlight! We started at the abbey so we could be in Schwalenberg for lunch. We ended up driving around quite a bit because I couldn't stomach the food 😬🫣 So, it's better to use an official trail to follow! I highly recommend this trail; along with the viaduct trail in Altenbeken, it's an absolute highlight for me!