The Große Reutteich is one of the ponds that the monks of Maulbronn created in the folds of the hills around their abbey, and at three kilometres from the monastery it is among the more distant ones. That distance makes it quieter, with less foot traffic and more sense of being in the woods. The pond sits in a shallow valley with trees on its banks, and the surface is calm and dark under the canopy.
The Cistercians arrived here in the middle of the twelfth century, and the system of dams and ditches they built over the next generations ranks as one of the best examples of medieval water engineering in Europe. Without it the monastery could not have fed itself, and it could not have powered its mills or its workshops. The word Reut comes from a root meaning to clear land, a clue that these ponds were carved out of the forest by hand, and that clearing was part of the monks' daily work.
The countryside around is a mosaic of woods, orchards and vineyards, with the ridges of the Stromberg rising to the south and west. The riding is calm and enjoyable, with winding roads through woodland and gentle gradients, a good surface and little traffic away from the main roads. In autumn the beech and oak turn bronze and gold and the ponds reflect them, and in spring wild garlic carpets the woodland floor.
Maulbronn, with nearly seven thousand people, is the place for fuel, bread and lunch, and the town's old streets are worth a short walk after the ride. This is a part of Swabia where good food is taken seriously, so look for regional dishes such as Maultaschen in broth or lentils with spaetzle and sausage, and a glass of the local red.
The ride pairs this pond with the nearby Ödenahlen, a smaller quiet spot in the same woods, so it makes a gentle half-day loop with the monastery as its centre. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, when the water is full and the light is kind.