The road bends around the Schermützelsee here, and the bends are the point. Buckow lies in a hollow of the Märkische Schweiz, where glaciers once carved a long channel and filled it with water, and the road follows the lake shore in a series of turns that make a welcome change from the straight lines of the Brandenburg plain. Beech woods climb the slopes, and the water flashes between the trunks.
Buckow itself is small, with about sixteen hundred people, but it has been a resort since the nineteenth century, when Berliners took the little narrow-gauge railway out from Müncheberg to spend the summer in villas along the shore. The railway is long closed, but the station buildings and some of the villas remain, with their carved balconies and shady gardens. The town retains a gentle, slightly faded charm, like a seaside resort with the sea replaced by a lake.
For riders, this is one of the most enjoyable roads east of Berlin. The curves are tight enough to be fun and open enough to be safe, the surface is generally good and the traffic is light on weekdays. Watch for gravel and leaves on the corners, especially in autumn, and for cyclists, who love this road as much as you do. Weekends in summer bring crowds, so it is best to ride early or on a weekday.
In the village, you will find a couple of cafes and a baker, and in summer a kiosk at the lakeside sells ice cream and drinks. A smoked fish roll from one of the stands is a classic.
The best light is in the evening, when the sun drops behind the western ridge and the lake goes still. If you are lucky, you will have the lake road to yourself, with only the sound of the engine and the evening birds.