An apple on an orbit, 365 daily steps and churches as landmarks: the Rohrlack–Vichel planet model offers Temnitztal an unusual idea for a walk. Manor parks and village churches whose architectural styles and histories differ considerably round out the picture. You can shape your trip around either a walking theme or the historic buildings.
Explore the Planet Model on Foot
In the planet model, the Earth is represented by an apple on an orbit between Rohrlack and Vichel. The churches serve as landmarks. The Earth's orbit is divided into 365 daily steps; in some places in the villages, information boards mark these steps with fictional dates. The model can be explored on foot. The apple shape makes the representation vivid, while the daily steps link the route to the course of the year. If you look out for the boards along the way, you will encounter not just a single model, but also its setting between the two villages.
Village Churches with Different Architectural Styles
In Garz, the church is a simple hall building with a south-side gallery annex. It was probably built in 1727, incorporating older elements. The village manor house dates from around 1700, and a manor park lies to its south. Here, architectural history and parkland come together in two distinct places.
The brick church in Kerzlin was consecrated on 26 November 1913. It replaced a half-timbered church built between 1723 and 1728; the organ and bells were transferred from the older building. Küdow has a listed village church: a Gothic fieldstone building dating from the late 13th century that has been altered several times. The two churches therefore differ both in their materials and in their construction dates.
Lüchfeld and Rohrlack also offer striking examples. The half-timbered church in Lüchfeld dates from the mid-18th century; its neo-Gothic brick tower with a pointed spire was built in 1874. Today's church in Rohrlack was built in 1892 on the remains of a 13th-century fieldstone church. Brick corner details and a square brick tower define its design. In Vichel, the church was built in 1867 in the Rundbogenstil (round-arch style) of the Berlin School, with Ferdinand von Quast involved in the project. The cruciform brick building has a narrow west tower, as well as sandstone friezes and cornices.
Manor Parks and a Described Walking Route
The manor park at Vichel Castle still looks almost like a forest and has been complemented by a meadow with fruit trees. The manor park in Garz is also closely connected to the village's appearance: it flanks the manor house to the south. In 2022, a local website described a walking route that starts at the bridge in Garz Manor Park, follows the Temnitz on the left and ends at Vichel Manor Park. If you would like to use this route description for your plans, check in advance whether the route is still suitable.
Traces of a Castle and a Place of Justice
In Garz, a fieldstone residential tower dating from the 13th or 14th century survives from a fortified medieval manor. The date range leaves the precise period uncertain, but the surviving tower gives the village another historical point of interest alongside the manor house and church.
Outside Rohrlack, three concrete sections bearing the inscription “The Court” recall a former place of justice or execution. The name leaves it unclear whether this was a courthouse site or an execution ground. Wildberg was first mentioned in a document in 1335; it also has surviving wooded, hilly remains of a Slavic castle dating from the 10th to the 13th century. These traces add older evidence to the churches' architectural history, though they are of a different nature: here, the focus is on a residential tower, memorial markers and castle remains.
Discover more destinations: Vielitzsee, Temnitzquell, Märkisch Linden, Berlinchen, Zernitz-Lohm, Gartow, Fehrbellin, Storbeck-Frankendorf.
Go to the regional travel overview: Ostprignitz-Ruppin.
