2018-09 Wanderungen an den Villeseen

For most of his working life, my great-grandfather used to shoulder his pick in the morning, and walk for about an hour to get to his workplace. That was right here, but there were no lakes here back then. Instead, there were lignite pits - names like Donatus, Berggeist, Gruhlwerk or Grube Liblar stand for the exploitation of an abundant energy that helped to industrialize our region. When these pits were worked out by the mid 1950s, the area was recultivated - today, the former Südrevier (southern district) is a wooded lake region that serves as recreation area for men, and nature reserve for many species.