Top 20 Lakes around Meppen

After the peat bog was extracted in the 1960s, the Dutch Forestry Commission began the renaturation of what is now the Bargerveen nature reserve. Today, due to its exceptional diversity of flora and fauna, it enjoys special protection as a European bird sanctuary and an important wetland. You can explore the area on approximately 30 kilometers of hiking trails, enjoy panoramic views of the bog from the observation hill and tower, or experience the unique landscape on guided tours and accessible rides on the Veenland Express train.

Tourism At the reservoir there is an 850 m long sandy beach with a lawn for sunbathing, restaurants, a sun terrace, a large children's playground, a halfpipe for inline skaters and a beach volleyball court. There are also numerous outdoor activities, such as windsurfing, sailing, diving, stand-up paddling and a mountain bike trail. Around 15 km of paved cycling and hiking trails open up the lake, 5.8 km of which are on the crest of the dam. The Emspark Auenwald holiday park has been located directly on the lake since 2006. There is also a youth campsite, a mobile home site and a youth house at the reservoir. The house is run by the Jugendhaus am Speicherbecken Geeste e.V. association. The Geester Seemeile takes place on the second weekend in July, an open-air shanty on the second Sunday in August and a kite festival in spring/summer.

The lake The artificial lake was built in the 1980s as a cooling water basin for the Emsland nuclear power plant, twelve kilometers away, on the former Lingen state forest "Biener Sand" and "Geester Sand". It is about two kilometers long and 1.3 km wide at its widest point. It is located on the B 70 and 15 meters higher than the surrounding terrain. According to RWE, the water surface is 230 hectares. The lake has no natural inflows other than precipitation and groundwater. Its water is taken from the Ems via the Dortmund-Ems canal and returned when required. The ring dam is a dam made of earth fill. If the Ems water flow is not sufficient to supply the additional water volumes required for normal operation of the power plant block, this can be taken in whole or in part from the reservoir. The stored water is fed to the block's extraction area via the Dortmund-Ems Canal.

Beautiful, interesting stopover on the lake tour!

Here is a tourist restaurant with a view of the Geestesee. You can charge e-bikes with your own charger here on request.

Beautifully landscaped lake with gastronomy and sandy beach. A touch of the Caribbean. Detour makes sense.

A beautiful recreation area with beach and palm trees. Something like that can also be made from a cooling water reservoir for a nuclear power plant.

The Geeste reservoir was built in the 1980s and has a capacity of around 23.4 million cubic meters of water. It is used from the Dortmund-Ems Canal at times when there is sufficient water flow in the Ems filled with a pump. At times of low water, up to 18 million cubic meters of water can then be returned via the canal to the Ems from the basin in the same way. Without further interference with nature, the Dortmund-Ems Canal serves as a long-distance water pipeline between the reservoir and the Ems. The total capacity of the basin is designed in such a way that the Lingen nuclear power plant can continue to operate even if the drought lasts for months without affecting the ecology of the Ems. The lake is about 2 km long and about 1.3 km wide at its widest point. The path on the crest of the dam is about 5.8 km long. The Geeste reservoir serves as a local recreation area for the region and offers a wide range of opportunities for walkers, cyclists, swimmers, sailors and divers.