Around Pottum at Wiesensee (district route)

1. Church tower

The inhabitants of Pottum applied to the House Nassau-Oranien at Dillenburg for permission to build their own chapel. It was consecrated in 1784. It consisted of a simple building without any additional structures such as a sacristy or tower. It had to be renovated around the 1890s due to suspected moisture in the masonry.

The tower still visible today has only stood in the community since 1925. New bells followed in 1927 after one of the two bells from the chapel was melted down for armament purposes in 1917. The remaining bell "St. Bartholomew" (patron saint of the church) now rings together with the Marien bell (inscription: Nos cum prole Pia benedicat virgo Maria) and the Christ-King bell (inscription: Dominus Rex benedicit populo suo in pace).

In 2012, mostly through donations, a radio-controlled clock was installed in the tower. It is curious that although there had been recesses in the masonry for clocks since the tower's construction, these had not been equipped with clocks due to lack of funds.

2. Village fountain

Pottum was first mentioned in 481 as Patum, the gathering place of the Germanic tribe "Sigamberer". Thus, it is an old settlement.

The origin of Pottum, formerly Paytheym or Patheim, later Pothump, can be assigned to the second settlement wave. This began with the integration of the area into the Frankish state association.

The first documentary mention is only found in 1490. In this document, Pottum is assigned along with other villages to the Westerburg Hubengericht (lower jurisdiction) in Hellenhahn. Over the years, not only the name has changed, but the original gathering place has become a village with a lake.

Opposite the village fountain is the bus stop. From there, a right path leads to the next station.

3. Harbor

The building at the end of the path is the clubhouse of the Sailing Club Wällerwind, Pottum (SCWP). During the renewal and modernization of the harbor area in 1986/87, the club founded in 1972 developed from humble beginnings and is now even the host for national ranking regattas (e.g., Conger regattas at Pentecost). Due to shading from trees in a valley location, gusty winds may occur, which demand considerable skill from the sailors.

To the west, the path continues to ...

4. Raft landing stage

After about 200m, a landing stage on the lake can be seen. From May 1, raft rides are possible on Wiesensee. A ride on the Wiesensee lasts about 1 hour. The main landing stage is located on the Winner side at the Tourist Information Wäller Land. On Sundays, the raft departs hourly from 2 pm. On other days, the raft – which also has drinks on board – operates by arrangement.

The shoreline path then leads into a small woodland.

5. Hüttenbach

Here at the bridge is the Hüttenbach, one of the two inflows to the Wiesensee. The 3.3 km-long Hüttenbach forms east of the neighboring town Höhn from two springs. It flows initially along the eastern edge of Höhn southwards, then passes through Höhn-Oellingen underground in pipes. It then flows through fields and meadows and subsequently a small forest. After leaving the forest, it is fed on the right by a meadow ditch and on the left by a small forest brook. It crosses under district road 56, flows now southwest, makes a small curve, and finally flows west of Pottum into the Wiesensee.

A few meters further, the gravel changes to an asphalted path connecting the towns of Pottum and Stahlhofen a. W. At the crossroads, there is a good view of the ...

6. Wiesensee

Pottum has always bordered a large wetland. It was referred to for a long time as "Seewiese" (lake meadow) and was already dammed into a lake around 1270 by the Count of Westerburg. Over the years, however, it became wet meadows again at the edge of the town, and the lake was again a "Seewiese."

In the 1960s, it was decided to make the wetland a lake again, and so the first trial damming took place in autumn 1969. Two years later, in 1971, the present Wiesensee was finally dammed. Firstly, to regulate runoff due to high precipitation and thaw water after winters, and secondly to create an attractive destination for emerging tourism.

The water surface currently covers 80 hectares, of which about 32 hectares lie in the Pottum district. The remaining area lies in the communities Stahlhofen am Wiesensee and Winnen. All three towns "share" the lake, which now belongs to the Westerburger Land recreational area.

Every autumn the lake is "drained" and remains without water until after the first frost. This is done to prevent algal growth. Nonetheless, these measures did not lead to the desired success. The lake meadow is returning, and the Wiesensee is silting up increasingly. It became clear that fundamental challenges (high nutrient input from inflows, very shallow water level) were not sufficiently considered. In an elaborate measure, the lake will likely be deepened in winter 2016/17, and the dredged sediments will form a new shoreline. The lake will then have a smaller water surface but be ecologically more stable.

At the path crossing, take the asphalted bike/pedestrian path to the right towards Pottum. After about 400 m, a bridge to cross district road 54 is visible on the left side. From here, the path continues on a side street towards the football pitch.

7. Hüttenberg Stadium

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8. Harschbacher Field

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9. Between Hüttenbach and Hinterwald

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10. Wolsbacherberg/Kirscheid

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11. Wolsbacherwies spring

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12. Kieselbach/NSG Seebachtal

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13. Leimerwies/Scharenberg

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14. Golf course

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15. Lawn/Palzhahn

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16. New center

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