Stahnsdorf has a cemetery that people cross the city to see. The Südwestkirchhof, opened in 1909 to relieve Berlin's overcrowded graveyards, spreads through pine woods like a park, and its Jugendstil chapels and carved family tombs hold a roll-call of Berlin's cultural life, including the illustrator Heinrich Zille and the painter Lovis Corinth. It feels more like a forest than a burial ground, quiet and shadowy, with moss on the stone and light filtering through the trees.
The setting is the Teltow plateau, the sandy upland just south-west of Berlin, cut by the Teltow Canal, which was dug in the early twentieth century to take shipping around the city. At Kleinmachnow, the canal has a lock and a small harbour, and the area carried a particular weight in the Cold War, when the Wall ran along its edge and separated the towns from West Berlin. Wealthy suburbs now fill the villages, and the old Prussian estates are surrounded by new development.
For riders, the area is a patchwork of suburban roads and green corridors. The Königsweg, a forest road, and the lanes along the canal give some relief from the traffic, with trees overhead and cyclists everywhere. The surface is mostly good, but cobbles and tram tracks in older centres call for care. Traffic around the Autobahn junctions is heavy, and local police check speed on the main roads. In late autumn, leaves cover the road and make the surface slick. In summer, the forest is cool and shady, which makes it a pleasure at midday.
The real Bad Saarow lies about fifty kilometres to the south-east, on the Scharmützelsee, and has a spa tradition that goes back to the 1900s. Here, though, services are easy and close. Fuel stations are on the main roads, and the three towns have supermarkets, bakeries and cafes. A small bar or restaurant in the old village centre of Stahnsdorf serves local food. The cemetery is open during daylight and is free to enter, though respectful behaviour is expected. It is a good place for a quiet end to a ride, and perhaps a walk.