NATURE PARKS24

Nature Parks 24 - Long weekend of the rhineland nature parks

24 events at 24 locations

With the "Nature Parks 24" series of events, the four nature parks Bergisches Land, Nordeifel, Rhineland and Siebengebirge present the diversity of the natural and cultural landscape in the Cologne-Bonn region every two years. The long weekend of the Rhenish nature parks offers 24 extraordinary nature experiences for children, families and adults.

The program includes guided hikes, bike tours, play and hands-on activities for children, and expert natural history excursions.

Here is an excerpt from the last weekend of action on October 10 and 11, 2020:

For those who like to be on the move, the newly opened Rhineland Orchard Route offers a guided bike tour with interesting facts about the "orchard meadow" cultural landscape. Or, alternatively, you can cycle along a former railroad line in the Bergisches Land and follow the trail of bats at the same time. How best to travel with tent and backpack, and where it is legal to camp in forests, can be learned on an excursion with a trekking expert in the northern Eifel. That this region is one of the last in NRW with a view of the Milky Way can be learned on an unforgettable guided tour of the stars with a look through extraordinary telescopes. A special highlight is also a tour to Lost Places, the velassenen places, in the Siebengebirge and an adventure tour for children through the wild Pleisbach Valley. Even for locals there might be one or the other unexpected new discovery. The program is colorfully mixed. Fossils can be collected, water samples can be taken, or big and small adventures can be experienced during a day together on the cave trail and in the Agger valley cave. Those who are simply looking for relaxation in nature will also find it. For example, on a mindfulness hike or on a barefoot hike for children. Last but not least, lectures on the Roman canal or guided tours on the history of the formation of the volcanic landscape on the fire route offer exciting insights for all those interested in history.

Thanks to the participation of many partners - including municipalities, associations, biological stations and other institutions - as well as the financial support of the Ministry of the Environment of North Rhine-Westphalia, the District Government of Cologne and the foundations of the Kreissparkasse Köln - the nature parks have succeeded in creating a varied and completely free program.

Like national parks, nature parks are a category of protected areas under the federal nature conservation act. There are a total of over 100 of them in Germany. They are large-scale landscapes consisting mainly of landscape and nature conservation areas. They cover about 27% of the area of the Federal Republic of Germany and preserve and develop nature and landscape with and for people. The area of the four large-scale protected areas, which form a green bracket around the city region to the right and left of the Rhine, covers around 5,000 square kilometers.

The joint event series of the Rhineland nature parks took place for the fifth time. It aims to draw attention to the work and the special role of the nature parks for the landscape and nature in the city region. It also shows how attractive the nature and landscape and the numerous local recreational opportunities are in the immediate vicinity of the major cities. In this way, the nature parks make a valuable contribution to sustainable and environmentally compatible regional development.

All events within the campaign Naturparke24 are free of charge. The number of participants is limited. Registration at www.naturparke24.de is required.

More Information

CONTACT

Jens Eichner