Grütz on the Havel: Cycling Routes and Village Church

Grütz is a cul-de-sac village on the Havel, situated between landscape and nature conservation areas. The cycling routes through the village, the needle dam at Grütz Lock and the history of the village church provide specific points of interest when choosing a destination.

Cycling Routes and Needle Dam in Grütz

The Havel Cycle Route and the Havelland Cycle Route pass through Grütz as part of the long-distance cycling route between Hamburg and Berlin. From these routes, you can reach the needle dam in the direction of Schollene and Havelberg. If you are planning a cycling tour, check the signage and local conditions.

Grütz Lock is distinguished by a rare surviving needle dam. Intact examples of this type of construction are considered so rare in Germany that they can be counted on one hand. The dam is therefore a distinctive cultural and historical landmark along the cycling routes; the towns of Schollene and Havelberg mentioned above also remain important for orientation.

Village Church and History

The village church in Grütz, which is open to visitors, was rebuilt by 1806 after the fire that destroyed the village in 1802. Inside are a wooden pulpit altar featuring folk paintings by an artist from Rathenow, stained-glass windows with medieval figures, and bells dating from 1815 as well as from an earlier period. The furnishings thus bring together several specific aspects of the village’s history: its reconstruction after the fire, the paintings, and the older and newer bells.

Rathenow as Additional Context

In the wider destination of Rathenow, the historic centre lies on an old town island surrounded by four branches of the Havel. It includes sections of the old town wall, Kirchberg and St. Marien-Andreas Church. This information relates to Rathenow and adds a distinct historic town centre to the picture of Grütz.

The bridges there also connect different named locations: the 348-metre-long Weinberg Bridge links Optikpark with the Weinberg. A pedestrian and cycling bridge connects Kirchberg with the Weinberg. It was built between 2001 and 2002, restoring the connection after 700 years. Optikpark is also located in the centre of Rathenow, beside a branch of the Havel.

The Rathenow Optical Industry Museum displays around 1,200 exhibits on the history of optics. Another connection to this subject leads into the town’s history: from 1800, the pastor Johann Heinrich August Duncker operated his first optical workshop in his birthplace, opposite the church’s west portal. Anyone interested in Rathenow’s cultural history can find both a glimpse of the collection and a specific historical connection to the workshop.

For additional nature and hiking context, there is the Rathenow municipal forest. It has a signposted network of hiking trails and a nature trail that starts and ends at the Ferchesarer Weg forest car park. The Bismarck Tower offers a different historical perspective: alongside the church tower, it is considered Rathenow’s second landmark. It was inaugurated on 24 June 1914 in honour of former Imperial Chancellor Prince Otto von Bismarck.

For the wider travel overview: Rathenow.