Start / Finish: Erkner / Woltersdorfer Schleuse train station
Length / Duration: 8 kilometers, 2 hours
Road condition / route development: partly natural, partly paved paths
Course: Erkner, Löcknitz, Wupatzsee, Löcknitz, Flakensee, Woltersdorfer Schleuse
Arrival/Departure:
- Arrival: RE1 or S3 to Erkner station
- Check out: Tram 87 from Woltersdorf Schleuse to S-Bahn station Rahnsdorf, alternatively bus 418 to Erkner station
- Directions: When you arrive at the S-Bahn station in Erkner, it's not far to the hiking paradise - the Löcknitz Valley. Follow Bahnhofstrasse to the roundabout and then turn into Friedrichstrasse. Cross the Flakenfließ and continue past the Bürgerle ice cream parlor, where you can get some refreshment. Then turn left into Fürstenwalder Strasse, where you'll find the start of the hike on the right.
Directions
From Erkner to the Löcknitz Valley The regional express takes you to Erkner very quickly. First, you walk a bit along the Way of St. James through the town, where you pass the Bürgerle ice cream parlor and can get some refreshment if you need it. After the railway underpass with its exciting graffiti, the tour turns onto the Wupatz educational trail. Here, you can learn about the flora, fauna and the regional habitat on an educational trail at 16 interactive stations with the forest gnome Wupatz. There is a lot to discover and try out!
After a short stretch between the railway line and the gardens, the trail goes through a typical Brandenburg pine forest towards the Löcknitz valley. At the Hubertussteg, you come across the 66-lake hiking trail and cross the oxbow of the Löcknitz river. Everything is densely overgrown and you almost feel like you are in the Amazon. Be sure to try out the balancing course on the nature trail!
Around the mystical Wupatzsee The Leistikowsteg crosses the now wider Löcknitz again and leads in an arc around the Wupatzsee, which is lined with reeds and alders. The densely overgrown shoreline repeatedly offers views of the lake and its inhabitants. Magnificent great crested grebes hunt for fish. Anyone who takes this tour in June will experience the blossoming of the water lilies and anyone who is out in spring can enjoy the many lilies of the valley.
View of the Flakensee The path continues along the edge of the forest and lush meadows along the Löcknitz towards Woltersdorf. It goes past a small forest playground with a swing, slide and insect hotel to the Flakensee. Here the path offers beautiful views of the water under fragrant pines and alders. Benches invite you to linger and bathing areas, including a large sandy beach, invite you to splash around.
View from the top and culinary reward If you still have strength in your calves, we recommend a detour to the 100-meter-high Kranichberg. From the observation tower you have a fantastic view all the way to the Berlin TV tower, across the chain of lakes and the Rauener Mountains. Bonus: The tower is a small museum and provides information about the film history of the “Märkisches Hollywood” here in the region.
You can end your late-riser tour in comfort in the restaurants at the Woltersdorf lock, for example with cake, snacks or home-brewed beer in the beer garden. The last few meters of the tour lead over the lock bridge to the tram stop. If you have to wait, you can easily shorten it: watch the locks in operation, try out the wind chimes on the sidewalk or enjoy an ice cream at the bakery opposite.
But then the final highlight of the tour awaits. The Wolterdorf tram 87 finally rattles happily through the Köpenick city forest back to the big city in historic carriages.
Refreshment tips:
- recognizer: Glass shop roastery DEKAFFE, Eiscafé Bürgerle
- lockWoltersdorf: various restaurants and cafés
Extra family tips:
- Ice cream and bakery: Cafe Bürgerle in Erkner, Café Knappe Woltersdorfer Schleuse
- Pedal, paddle and license-free small motor boats is available at Spree-Safari on the Flakensee near the Woltersdorf lock. Online reservation possible.
- Playgrounds: Forest playground at Flakensee, at the Woltersdorf lock
- Swimming: various natural bathing areas at Flakensee
- Public toilets: S-Bahn station Erkner, Woltersdorfer Schleuse
