Madfeld combines historic places of remembrance with opportunities for hiking and cycling. Historical points of interest include the Jewish cemetery and Pottricks Kreuz; outdoors, circular hiking trails lead through forests and past nature reserves. Cycling Tour 4 also includes Madfeld in a regional loop. You can choose your focus: local history, a hiking trail, or a tour connecting several places.

History and landmarks in Madfeld

Madfeld’s Jewish cemetery was established around the middle of the 18th century. It contains 39 gravestones. It is the largest Jewish cemetery in the former Brilon district.

The old forestry barn was built around 1850. Pottricks Kreuz is a historicist wayside cross on Bleiwäscher Straße between Madfeld and Bleiwäsche. The Millenium Gate marks another point in time: it was erected in 2011 to mark Madfeld’s thousand-year anniversary. The village signs point to the town’s historical past. They were created in collaboration with Briloner Heimatbund – Semper Idem and funded as part of a LEADER project.

The historical references highlight different aspects: the cemetery and wayside cross reflect religious and art-historical associations, while the forestry barn and Millenium Gate are specific structures built at different times. The village signs add another perspective, with information about local history. Together, these offer several ways to explore the past without presenting the individual sites as a single route.

Landscape and nature reserves

Hemmeker Bruch nature reserve lies north of Madfeld. It is a wet depression in the Madfeld slate terrain, used as grassland.

Another natural area features along the Brilon-Madfeld circular hiking trail (M2), which passes through Eschker Holz nature reserve. Hemmeker Bruch and Eschker Holz are therefore two distinct points of interest: the landscape itself is the focus at Hemmeker Bruch, while the M2 trail leads through the protected area. If you include natural areas in your travel plans, you can keep these names distinct rather than treating them as one area.

Planning hikes and cycling trips

The Brilon-Madfeld circular hiking trail (M3) is 9.83 kilometers long. It leads through the forests near Madfeld and over Kelleker Holz, Liebfrauenberg, and Brautlicht. You can access the trail from the Kelleker Holz hiking parking area or take bus 483 to the Tiefer Weg stop.

Regional Cycling Tour 4 offers another way to include Madfeld in a trip. It runs from Brilon via Obermarsberg and Madfeld, returning to Brilon. While the M3 is a circular hiking trail through the forests near Madfeld, Tour 4 connects several named places in a regional loop. Comparing the two can help you choose between a hiking trail with a specified length and a cycling tour described by the places along its route.

Benches, a bridge, and Brüggepark

There are three groups of benches in the Madfelder Bürgerwald, where you can watch sunsets, depending on the season. The seasonal aspect matters: the opportunity to watch them is not described as independent of the time of year. At the Millenium Gate, picnic benches invite hikers to take a break.

An oak bridge over the Aabach is 5 meters long and 1.3 meters wide. Another place in Madfeld’s recreational offerings is the Brüggepark multi-generational park, planned as a playground and a meeting place for public events.

Discover more destinations: Bontkirchen, Radlinghausen, Hoppecke, Nehden, Alme, Brilon-Wald, Gudenhagen.

Back to the main travel overview: Brilon.