The best family-friendly hikes and walks around Auensee

The 12-hectare Auensee, while a popular destination, has been suffering from recurring blue-green algae problems for decades. Auensee is a highly eutrophic lake with no inflow or outflow, fed exclusively by groundwater heavily loaded with nutrients. When temperatures are high in summer and little fresh water is supplied, the oxygen content in the water can drop drastically. Fish – especially sensitive species and large, established populations – then suffer from acute oxygen deficiency. Under unfavorable weather conditions or further stress such as nutrient input, a critical situation arises, regularly leading to significant losses of animal life. For the affected fish, this means great suffering, as the suffocation or oxygen deficiency often extends over hours. In addition to fish, numerous other animals in and around the water are also affected: insects, waterfowl, and small mammals lose an important food source, and the ecological balance is thrown off. Repeated fish kills indicate fundamental deficits in water management and a lack of protective measures. From an animal welfare perspective, this should be counteracted – for example, through sustainable management (e.g., better fresh water supply, reduction of nutrient inputs, technical aeration in midsummer). Only in this way can the body of water be developed back into a species-rich and animal-welfare-friendly habitat. Measures aimed at long-term improvement of water quality and the prevention of fish kills are indispensable for a functioning urban ecosystem and the preservation of biodiversity. The Green Party faction has repeatedly advocated for improving the lake's condition through additional oxygen input. Since spring 2012, three deep water aeration systems (TIBEAN) have been in use, supplying the lake with oxygen. However, the fundamental problem of high sludge volumes in the lake cannot be solved by this alone. This station is part of the Discover Green Corners tour "Animal welfare in Leipzig" - gruene-ecken-entdecken.de

It always looks beautiful when you walk past it

In addition, the steam-powered railway

Free parking is available near the Auensee. Arrive early to secure good spots in good weather!

The Burgauenbach branches off from the Nahle in the Leipzig district of Alt-West in the Leutzsch district above the Nahle weir. Over the next three kilometers, it passes through three culverts, first the Kleine Luppe, then the Leipzig–Leutzsch railway line (the Wahren–Leutzsch railway line that follows shortly afterwards is crossed in a tunnel) and finally Gustav-Esche-Straße. In this area, a branch leads approx. 0.2 m³ of water per second to the Bauerngraben.[3] At the nearby border with the Burgaue district in the Wahren district, the Burgauenbach has almost completed half of its journey. After about 3.5 km of flow, a trough bridge directs the Burgauenbach over the Bauerngraben, which runs almost two meters lower. The Burgauenbach joins it after a total of 5.374 km and, according to the common definition, ends at this long-standing body of water. However, according to the criterion of greater water flow, the Bauerngraben flows into the Burgauenbach, shortly before its confluence with the Neue Luppe.

The Leipzig floodplain forest (also colloquially known as floodplain forest or floodplain forest[1]) is a floodplain forest area that lies mainly in the area of the city of Leipzig. It used to be a softwood floodplain (alder) and was regularly flooded by the floods of the Pleiße, Weiße Elster and Luppe. Due to human influence (especially regulation of the flowing waters), a hardwood floodplain (ash, oak, maple) has now prevailed. The Leipzig floodplain forest is one of the largest remaining floodplain forests in Central Europe. Despite the various human interventions and the proximity to a large city, parts of the Leipzig floodplain forest have retained a very natural character. Around 1163 hectares of the floodplain forest belong to the Leipzig city forest. Parts of the floodplain forest stretch far through the city and even border the city center via parks such as the Rosental. The floodplain forest can be easily reached on foot or by public transport in many places. The network of footpaths, cycle paths and bridle paths in the floodplain forest is in some places as dense as in a park. There are numerous excursion destinations in the Leipzig floodplain forest area. Forestry use plays a subordinate role.

The Kleine Luppe is one of the numerous tributaries of the White Elster in its anastomosing river course (often referred to as the inland delta). It flows exclusively in the city of Leipzig and is a water body of the first order in terms of water law.[2] The Kleine Luppe branches off from the White Elster in Leipzig above the Palmengarten weir as a left tributary, is regulated by a weir in Lindenau, passes under Kuhturmstrasse at the Angerbrücke and flows into the Nahle in the Leipzig Auwald near Leutzsch. In Lindenau, in the area of Lützner Strasse, it split into the western course of the same name and the eastern course called Kuhburger Wasser, which has since been filled in. The latter merged in the area of the Amelungswehr in Niederholz with the Nahle, which had branched off from the White Elster shortly before, and which merged with the Kleine Luppe a little later. From here on, it was only called the Luppe, but today bears the name of the Nahle, which was expanded for flood protection. The Kleine Luppe is a section of the Luppe, which was split several times during the construction of the Neue Luppe and still flows separately into the Saale today.

On August 5, 1951, the second pioneer railway of the former GDR was put into operation in Leipzig. It covers a distance of 1.9 km on its circular route. There is a station and three stops. From the beginning of April to the end of October, on weekdays and on Sundays and public holidays, the park railway, a locomotive with a track width of 381 mm, makes its rounds around the idyllic Auensee across meadows and through densely wooded areas. This lake was created in 1909 from a gravel pit that provided material for the construction of Leipzig Central Station. The railway is operated by the Parkeisenbahn Auensee e.V. association in cooperation with the city of Leipzig. However, as has been the case since its founding, the trains are operated by children and young people in their free time.