Wälder um Welver - natural deciduous forest near Welver

6.31 km long
Round trip
Difficulty: easy
Condition: very easy
Great panorama
Hiking
  • 1:35 h
  • 6.31 km
  • 9 m
  • 9 m
  • 70 m
  • 76 m
  • 6 m
  • Start: Hiking car park in Kirchwelver on the L695 at the junction to Klosterhof
  • Destination: Hiking car park in Kirchwelver on the L695 at the junction to Klosterhof
Surrounded by predominantly agricultural landscape, this area of more than 300 hectares is the largest continuous natural deciduous forest in the lower Börde area. Here near-natural forests with ancient trees have survived. These provide habitat to rare bird and animal species such as Red Kite, Black Woodpecker, Tree Frog and Crested Newt.

The forests around Welver are especially attractive from March to June, when spring flowers like Wood Anemone, Arum, Wild Garlic and Oxlip transform the forest floor into a carpet of flowers. This is also the time of greatest vocal activity of numerous species of birds like the Nuthatch, Green Woodpecker and Eurasian Treecreeper. A little later in the year, the Nightingale and the Golden Oriole can be heard.

Good to know

Pavements

Street
Asphalt
Gravel
Trail
Path

Best to visit

suitable
Depends on weather

Directions

From the hiking car park you can walk through Kirchwelver and turn left to make a short hike (A2, two kilometres) through the Klosterholz forest. Or upon leaving the car park you can turn right and take a longer forest route (A6, 3.6 kilometres).

Tour information

  • Loop Road

  • Stop at an Inn

Directions & Parking facilities

From the country road L 670 between Soest and Hamm several junctions take you towards Welver.

Address for satnavs: Klosterhof 59514 Welver

GPS (UTM): 32 U 428339, 5719801

Google coordinates: 51.624909, 7.965362

Hiking car park in Kirchwelver on the L695 at the junction to Klosterhof
By train (route Hamm – Paderborn; Welver railway station)

Additional information

In Kirchwelver you can visit the Heimathaus Welver. This museum houses lovingly assembled exhibits of local history and landscape history. The idyllic little village centre in the immediate vicinity of a former Cistercian monastery offers visitors intellectual and spiritual interest, and good food, too.

Author

Natalia Jaworski

Organization

Arbeitsgemeinschaft Biologischer Umweltschutz im Kreis Soest e.V

License (master data)

Natalia Jaworski
License: Attribution, ShareAlike

Author´s Tip / Recommendation of the author

If you wish to go on a longer circular tour by bike, you can travel north from Kirchwelver via Dinker (A 3 - 6.7 kilometres) and via Eilmsen (A 4 - 13.7 kilometres), or head south via Meyerich (W - 14.2 kilometres) or east via Holtkamp (A 5 - 7.6 kilometres).

Nearby

Address

Wälder um Welver - natural deciduous forest near Welver
59514 Welver