Four lakes, paths through a former mining landscape and striking reminders of the town’s history give Borken (Hesse) a varied character. This small town is located in the Schwalm-Eder district of northern Hesse. When planning your stay, you can choose from water activities, cycling and hiking routes, and cultural history—or give these themes different priorities.
Lakes, shorelines and landscapes
The Borken Lake District comprises four lakes surrounded by meadows and forests. Activities on offer include swimming, surfing, diving, hiking and cycling. The Stockelache natural bathing lake has a sandy beach, bathing islands, a water slide and a restaurant. The range of options spans activities on the water and outings on land; when choosing what to focus on, consider what interests you most during your trip.
The landscape can also be described more precisely: the municipal area lies within the Landsburg Depression and the Hessengau region, both part of the West Hessian Depression. The Borken Basin is drained by smaller streams such as the Olmes, Hundsbach and Lembach. The Schwalm crosses the municipal area from west to east.
Compare cycling routes and hikes
The signposted lake circuit, around 22.5 kilometres long, connects Singliser See, Gombether See, Stockelache natural bathing lake and Borkener See nature reserve. Check the latest conditions before setting out: a notice warns of a temporary bridge closure on the route. The Hessian Cycle Route R15 connects the Borken Lake District with Silbersee near Frielendorf and begins near Borken on the R4.
For a hike, the six-kilometre Celtic Trail is another option. The woodland route takes about two hours and passes monuments from modern, medieval and prehistoric times. The 32-kilometre Lignite Circuit, by contrast, can be explored on foot or by bicycle and leads through the former Borken lignite-mining district. Length, approximate duration and mode of travel offer different points of reference when planning how to spend a few available hours or a full day out.
Mining history and buildings
Borken’s history in the 20th century is linked to lignite mining and the generation of electricity from lignite in Hesse. The “Coal & Energy” theme park shows how lignite was extracted in open-cast mines and used to generate electricity. The “Borkener See” nature conservation information centre uses animals, plants and interactive media to explain how nature is recovering in the former mining landscape. Together, these sites offer two different perspectives: the extraction and use of the resource, and nature’s subsequent recovery.
The town’s story also includes older traces. The “Altes Amtsgericht” cultural centre is Borken’s oldest building: a half-timbered house dating from 1473. St. Michael’s Church in the district of Kleinenglis contains significant late Gothic wall paintings from the 15th and 16th centuries. The surviving ramparts of the Altenburg are five to seven metres high and rank among the best-preserved ring walls in Hesse. Documents from 1303 and 1314 refer to Borken as an “oppidum” and “civitas”.
The wider setting in the Schwalm-Eder district
As a regional context in its own right, the Schwalm-Eder district includes upland landscapes around the KnĂĽll, Kellerwald and Habichtswald ranges. The Schwalm Cycle Route is around 100 kilometres long and leads to the point where the Schwalm flows into the Eder, just before Felsberg. It runs mostly on paved or surfaced paths through river landscapes of meadows, fields, villages and half-timbered towns. If you are planning a longer section, check the route conditions before your trip.
This selection can help you organise your own itinerary without trying to fit every theme into the same stay.
Discover more destinations: Wabern, KnĂĽllwald, Ottrau, Bad Zwesten, Schwalmstadt, Schwarzenborn, Jesberg, Oberaula.
Go to the broader travel overview: Schwalm-Eder district.
