Um den Gräbendorfer See ab Vetschau

You start at the Schlossremise Tourist Information Center at Schlossstrasse 10 in Vetschau / Spreewald. First, the path leads you past the Wendish-German double church and the Vetschau market square. Here you will discover small alleys, buildings steeped in history and squares from different times. Via the Hospitalplatz it goes to the Vetschau district of Märkischheide, which was called Weißagk until 1937. The well-known Spreewald painter Wilhelm Schieber, in whose honor a monument was erected in the castle park, lived in this part of the Spreewald city. Cycling in the direction of Babow you cross the "border" after a good kilometer and continue to move in the Spree-Neisse district. On the bike path, past meadows, fields and forests, the route leads to Eichow. You cross the village along Landstrasse 524 and head towards the Gräbendorfer See. Before that you cycle through a forest, here you leave the paved paths and enjoy the tranquility of the forest. Arrived in the desert grove, the ice cream parlor of the “Kśišowka” bike boarding house invites you to take a short break. The Lower Sorbian / Wendish name "Kśišowka" refers to the Kzschischoka, a formerly water-rich river that drove the wheels of the Wüstenhain watermills for many centuries. In 1937 the Kzschischoka was given the official name "Greifenhainer Fließ", which is still valid today. A short stop on the Wüstenhain shores of the Gräbendorfer See offers a magnificent view over the impressive 475 hectares of water. The lake, which emerged from the former Gräbendorf open-cast mine, was released from mining supervision in September 2018. The 9 km long, paved circular path around the lake is not only excellent for cycling, skating or walking is also possible here. After circumnavigating the lake you will arrive in Laasow. Before exploring the place, take a look at the floating houses directly on the shore of the Gräbendorfer See, which can be reached via a jetty. One of these objects was created as a project of the International Building Exhibition (IBA) "Fürst-Pückler-Land". A further development in tourism is planned and already recognizable. Laasow, whose Sorbian name “Łaz” means something like “clear spot in the forest or forest meadow”, has a small, Gothic-style church, probably from the 14th century, and a manor house hidden in the park . The manor house, built in the Swiss villa style in 1856, has long been asleep and is definitely worth waking up. Now leave the village in the direction of Briesen and cycle about 3 km along the road to Tornitz. Here you can touch what was once the tallest wind turbine in the world. The steel lattice tower with a rotor 90 m in diameter is 205 m high. Shortly before you reach your destination, you will pass through the small town of Lobendorf. The manor, located a bit off the road, is a real gem. In the immediate vicinity is the "Sacred Spring Loboschitza", the area of which is known archaeologically as a ground monument. The square is bordered by three old linden trees, which the then manor owner General Paul von Leszczynski had planted. On the home straight you will roam the NABU White Stork Information Center. The focus of the exhibition there is the character bird of Lower Lusatia, the white stork. After about 33 km you will arrive at the starting point of the tour, at the Tourist Information Castle Remise in Vetschau / Spreewald.