Elbe-Heide Route

3:18 h
48.79 km
58 m
58 m
15 m
71 m
56 m
Start: Tourist Information Gartow, Springstraße 14, 29471 Gartow
Destination: Tourist Information Gartow, Springstraße 14, 29471 Gartow

Blooming heath landscapes, vast forests, lively Elbe floodplains and interesting places: On the Elbe-Heide route, you experience the best of Wendland comfortably from the saddle of your bike!

The Elbe-Heide route connects two of Wendland's greatest highlights and shows you both the beauty of the heath and the Elbe valley meadows. The region between Elbe and heath is shaped by the Ice Age. The Höhbeck, which you cross on your route, is, for example, a geest island preserved from the Ice Age. After the Vistula Ice Age, huge amounts of sand were deposited during the melting of the ice. Over time, the sand was blown into meter-high dunes and mainly covered by heath. At the beginning of the 18th century, this nutrient-poor landscape was afforested with pines, and the heath disappeared. After a catastrophic forest fire in 1975, a large heath area developed again near Nemitz on the burnt surfaces. The Nemitz Heath is today a multiple recognized bird protection area and has a high importance in international species protection. The Nemitz Heidehaus between Trebel and Nemitz is an ideal starting point for a detour through the blooming heath.

Start

Tourist Information Gartow, Springstraße 14, 29471 Gartow

Ausstellung Biosphärenreservat Niedersächsische Elbtalaue

Museum

Wendland-Therme Gartow — CC-BY-SA | Urlaubsregion Wendland.Elbe

FamilienTherme Gartow

Thermal springs

Pavements

Street

Asphalt

Gravel

Trail

Path

Best to visit

suitable

Depends on weather

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Directions

Starting from the tourist information in Gartow, you begin the route along the Gartow Lake. At the settlement of Binnenfeld, turn left towards Restorf, which you pass through. The path then takes you directly to the Höhbeck, from where you have a great view over the Elbe river landscape. At the highest point, turn left and enjoy an easy downhill ride to Vietze. At the foot of the Höhbeck and along the Elbe, continue past Meetschow and on to Gorleben. You follow the Elbe further to Laase, then the path leaves the river and you turn left. Through the Grevesberg Heath, you now pass through the villages of Dünsch, Liepe, Vasenthien, and Tobringen until you reach the town of Trebel. A detour to the Nemitz Heath is worthwhile here! At the Heidehaus, you can learn a lot about the heath and also watch a few Heidschnucken (moorland sheep) at work. Back on the country road, the Elbe-Heide route leads you leisurely through the Trebel Forest back to Gartow.

Equipment

You should always carry a pump and repair kit with you in case your tire runs out of air!

Directions & Parking facilities

From Hamburg, drive via the A1 (signposted toward Bremen), A39 (signposted toward Lüneburg) to Lüneburg. Take the B216 (signposted toward B216/Dannenberg/Dahlenburg/Bleckede) to Dannenberg and then follow the B191 to Gartow.

From Berlin, drive via the A10 (signposted toward Hamburg), A24 (also toward Hamburg) and continue on B189 (toward Pritzwalk/Heiligengrabe). Then follow the B493 to Gartow.

Parking lot at the Gartow Tourist Information
Springstraße 14, 29471 Gartow

Coordinates:
Geographic: 53.027064, 11.461147
UTM: 32U 665051 5878114

The train stations Salzwedel and Dannenberg (East) are easily accessible from all directions by train.

From Salzwedel, take bus 8040 to Lüchow and from there bus 8060 to Gartow. Get off at the stop Gartow (Elbe) Kirche.

From Dannenberg (East), take bus 8070 (toward Schnackenburg ferry / Borderland Museum) to Gartow. Get off at the stop Gartow (Elbe) Altenheim.

At certain times, these buses operate as on-call buses (RUF buses). You can reach the RUF buses by phone at +49 5841 977 377.

License (master data)

Steffen Gebbeken

Author´s Tip / Recommendation of the author

The coffee garden Schwedenschanzer on the Höhbeck is an ideal place to stop on the way!

Safety guidelines

Always pay attention to your safety and wear a bicycle helmet!

Map

Cycling region Wendland.Elbe

Place of interest

Tours