From the Ittertal to the Diemeltal

The tour starts at the railroad station at an altitude of 585 m and continues to the village center, where the Linnenkerl monument stands. A little caution is required on the descent on the first kilometer due to the numerous passers-by and guests.From the Linnenkerl monument onwards, there is little sign of tourist traffic after turning into Schwalefeld Straße towards Diemelsee. Along the Itterbach stream, the road runs steadily downhill towards Diemelsee, with an average gradient of 1.5% over a length of 13.5 km to the lowest point at 383 m above sea level at the dam wall. Nestled between the Upland mountain ranges, you can easily pedal at a gear ratio of 53/15 or 53/14 and achieve an average speed of over 40 km/h on this route, which is a dream for "rouleurs". It is almost unimaginable that top racers can ride such an average speed consistently over distances of more than 200 km.Back to our tour: After Bontkirchen, the Upland mountain ranges become lower until they finally merge into the Diemelsee basin. On the map, the Diemelsee gives us the impression of a "Y" shape: The Itterbach forms one letter branch, the Diemel the other; both letter branches lead to the dam wall, where the annual lake festival is held in summer. Several hotels and restaurants around the lake offer snacks and refreshments.After crossing the imposing dam wall, we cycle on the mountainous side of the lake, comparable to the topography along the Upper Italian lakes, in the direction of Giebringhausen, Deisfeld and Eimelrod. We pass Hemmighausen, Willingen's smallest district. This time we see other Upland mountains ahead of us, which have to be crossed in the direction of Willingen. After the turn-off in Eimelrod, after passing the "Zur Zweere" inn, a 2 km long and approx. 12% uphill section begins after a meadow valley bottom over the "Sähre" mountain range. It is recommended that you enjoy this ascent slowly and take another look back at the Diemelsee valley basin. After a hairpin bend, the route plunges into the forest until finally, on the open hilltop at an altitude of 658 m, a bench with a magnificent view of the Hochheideturm tower 6 km away invites you to take a short break. The view there is unobstructed as a result of hurricane Kyrill in 2007.Before the approx. 2 km long descent to Usseln and the subsequent 4.5 km long rolling passage to Willingen, which is shady along the well asphalted cycle path, it is recommended that you put on a wind protection vest. After all, this 37.1 km tour, which is intended as a roll-in, should not end with a cold.