Here the Weser river does something that rivers in the north German plain rarely do: it cuts through a hill range. The Wiehengebirge arrives from the west and the Wesergebirge from the east, and between them the river has carved a gap about a kilometre wide, the Porta Westfalica, the Westphalian Gate. Behind it the land opens out into the great flat plain toward Hanover and the sea. For centuries this was a natural doorway, and the people who held it controlled the route.
Two hills mark the gate. On the western one stands a huge monument to Kaiser Wilhelm the First, built in the 1890s in a heavy classical style with the emperor on a pedestal under a canopy, looking over the valley with a fairly confident air. Nobody has ever called it subtle. According to local legend, the hill was also a place where the Saxon leader Widukind once held out against Charlemagne, which is why the whole area has a faintly mythic reputation among Germans. You do not have to care about any of that to enjoy the view, which on a clear day stretches across the river, the towns of Minden and Porta Westfalica, and the plain spreading out beyond.
The riding along the ridge roads is pleasant rather than dramatic. The roads climb in a series of curves through beech woods, then come out at points with long views. Surfaces are generally good, and there are some tight bends where the hill slopes steeply. Expect cyclists and weekend walkers in fine weather, and take care on damp days when leaves lie on the road. Early morning in autumn, with mist in the valley, gives the best light for photographs.
Services are simple here. Porta Westfalica itself has more than thirty-six thousand inhabitants, so fuel, supermarkets and cafés are at hand within a couple of kilometres, and Minden, about five kilometres off, has a handsome old centre with a long history as a river town. Bad Oeynhausen is a spa town a little further. Park the bike at the base, and walk up if you want the full view.