Visiting the Middle Ages - Manderscheider Castles

Recently I was allowed to participate in a NATURE ACTIVE EXPERIENCE guided tour by relaxation coach Gabi Reuter. During the walk through Manderscheid, the medieval past of the magnificent natural and cultural landscape was to be thematized. The walk started in the early afternoon at the main entrance of the Maarmuseum.
In the very warm weather, we set off with a small group of four people in total in the direction of the Mosenberg. There our hiking guide gave us a short introduction into volcanology. She told us how the maars and what the difference is to a crater lake. crater lake exists. For information, maars were formed by water vapor explosions. In contrast, a crater lake is formed when the funnel of a volcano fills with water.

We continued to a flower meadow, where Gabi Reuter explained the local flora and fauna to us. She gave us the tip that if we had an insect bite, for example, we could spontaneously apply ribwort plantain to relieve the itch.
After that we continued our walk and a few minutes later we entered the forest. There it was directly a little cooler and there was a completely different atmosphere. We lingered for a moment and listened devoutly to the little poem that was recited to us there. It was about the extent to which the forest can also be used as a therapeutic agent.
We continued through the Leo-Bönner-Allee, a planted avenue of conifers, to the Pellenzkanzel. From there we had a breathtaking view of the Upper and Lower Castle of Manderscheid. At this vantage point, our relaxation coach showed us a picture of what the castle probably once looked like and told us about life at the castle in the Middle Ages.

Then we hiked a bit on the Lieser pathuntil we reached the Schmitthütte. From there we had a beautiful panoramic view of the hilly landscape in front of us. Below, the Lieser River was quietly splashing and we could also spot the Burgweiher pond in the far distance. With these temperatures, it did us good to rest for a moment and take a break for a drink. Gabi Reuter used this little break to start a thought experiment with the group. We were asked to close our eyes and imagine that we were watching the landscape from a bird's eye view like an eagle. With the previous view in mind and the silence that surrounded us, I was able to imagine myself in this situation very well and it was a very relaxing feeling.

We then continued downhill to the castles. It began to rain lightly. The drops that penetrated the dense foliage of the trees were a welcome refreshment. In between, we took a few breaks to consciously feel nature and perceive it with all our senses. With our eyes closed, we listened to the sound of the wind in the trees and felt moss, for example. Arriving at the Kaisertempelchen, we took another break and enjoyed the view of the two castles. From there, we walked along a rocky, slate path along the foot of the Oberburg to the Tunierwiese at the foot of the Niederburg. This is where the medieval knights ' tournaments take place every year during the Historical Castle Festival take place. We crossed the Lieser River with the help of a bridge and hiked up to the entrance of the castle.

Step by step we climbed the castle and visited the individual rooms. Our imagination was stimulated by the pictorial stories told by our relaxation coach. It was easy to imagine what the rooms must have looked like in the past and how people lived there. We went up to the castle keep. From there we had a beautiful view of the upper castle.

This is where our walk ended. It was a great change of excursions into geology, biology, volcanology and history in combination with relaxation and perception exercises. Many thanks to Gabi Reuter for this great and relaxing walk through Manderscheid.

Who also once desire with Gabi Reuter or one of the other healthy country landscape mentors or relaxation coaches to make a route finds all dates under ACTIVELY EXPERIENCE NATURE.

Author: Julia Schmitz