Berkenbrück is a small village on the Spree, between Fürstenwalde and Frankfurt an der Oder, in the east of Brandenburg. The river here winds slowly through meadows and forests, and the village, with its houses scattered along the water and among the pines, has a sleepy, summer-holiday feel. On the way back towards Berlin, it earns its place with a swim in the river or in one of the small lakes nearby, such as the Dehmsee.
The Spree is gentle here, with sandy banks and reedy shores, and the water is soft and slightly brown from the peat. It is popular with canoeists and anglers, and on hot days families from the surrounding villages come to swim. The lakes are calmer and warmer, with small beaches and jetties. As always with natural waters, check the depth and the current before diving in, and swim only at designated spots where possible.
A few kilometres west, Fürstenwalde has a Gothic cathedral, St. Mary's, whose interior was rebuilt after the war with a striking modern design inside the old brick shell. South of Fürstenwalde, in the forested Rauen Hills, lie the Markgrafensteine, two huge granite boulders carried here by the glaciers of the ice age from Scandinavia. In the nineteenth century, a giant granite bowl was carved from one of them and transported to Berlin, where it still stands in front of the Altes Museum in the Lustgarten.
The roads around Berkenbrück are quiet and flat, winding through forests and along the river, with occasional cobbles and sandy verges. Fürstenwalde, about seven kilometres away, has fuel, supermarkets and restaurants. The ride back to Berlin follows the Spree valley or the A12 motorway; the old country roads through the villages are slower but far more interesting. In summer, the forests smell of pine and the evenings are long and warm.