Iversheim is a village in the valley of the Erft, at the northern edge of the Eifel, just downstream from the old spa town of Bad Münstereifel. It is known for one thing: a Roman lime-burning works, one of the best preserved in Europe. The Romans built a series of kilns here to burn limestone from the surrounding hills into quicklime, which was used to make mortar for the forts, towns and roads of the province of Lower Germany. The kilns were worked by detachments of soldiers from the Rhine legions, as inscriptions found on the site show.
The kilns, about six of them in a row, have been excavated and are protected by a building where you can see the stone ovens and learn how they worked. The site is part of the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire, Lower German Limes, because it served the frontier army. It is a small, specialist site, open in the warmer months, but it gives a real sense of the industrial scale of the Roman military.
Bad Münstereifel, about four kilometres away, is a lovely medieval town enclosed by walls, with half-timbered houses along the river, a Romanesque church and a castle. It has become known for its outlet shopping, which fills some of the old buildings. Nearby, the Effelsberg radio telescope, one of the largest fully steerable radio telescopes in the world, sits in a valley in the hills.
The riding in the Eifel is excellent. The roads through the hills and valleys around Bad Münstereifel, toward Blankenheim, the Ahr valley and the Nürburgring, are twisty and scenic, through forest and farmland. The Nürburgring, about forty kilometres to the south, is a mecca for motorcyclists and car enthusiasts, and the roads around it are popular, so expect a lot of bikes at weekends and police checks. Weather in the Eifel can change quickly, with rain and fog common, even in summer.
Bad Münstereifel and Euskirchen have fuel and food. Local food is hearty: Eifel ham, potato pancakes and game. Spring and autumn are the best seasons for riding.