Desperate to get out of Berlin one weekend, I invited my colleagues on a hike from Wiesenburg to Bad Belzig in the Fläming region of Brandenburg. I had never heard of either place but many replied with praise of the spa town Bad Belzig and its accompanying Burg (castle). This hike, and both of its endpoints, make great day trips from Berlin. For just 33€, you and up to 4 friends can travel to and from either town for the day on the Brandenburg Ticket. The north route of this trail is rated 5 stars in my guide book and did not disappoint. What’s special about it is that it is an Internationaler Kunstwanderweg, or international art trail. Every few kilometers along the way a new sculpture awaited us. It was really fun to visit in a group because then we could all discuss the artwork together.
Starting the Hike
We took the RE7 directly to Wiesenburg from Berlin Hauptbahnhof. The town itself is quite cute, but the main attraction is the Schlosspark (which you’ll need to walk through anyway to get to Wiesenburg since the train station is 3 kilometers away). I was disappointed to find out that the beautiful Schloss (palace) is not open for visitors, but the park makes up for that.
Just 100m from the station, the first sculpture greeted us: 7 totem pole like logs sticking out of the ground with various faces carved into them, called Tor zum Fläming or Gate to Fläming. These totem pole-like welcome figures were created as a youth project from students in Brandenburg. From there we entered the park, easily following the yellow symbol with curvy white lines which would guide us all day.
The next sculpture was made up of mushrooms hidden on the forest floor with various “senses,” like sense of humor, sense of truth, sense of the hidden, and an organizational sense.
sense of hope 
sense of the ideal and money sense 
sense of facts?
Wiesenburg
At the end of the park we reached the castle and took an obligatory group photo. The view of the gardens from the terrace was great, and I bet even better when in bloom.
Up until this point, the north and south routes are the same. After exiting the Schlosspark and taking in the view of the castle gate, be on the lookout for the sign post which indicates that the trail splits. Going left leads you to the north route, which is described next. Turning right takes you to the south route, which is summarized at the end of this post.
The North Route
The next sculptures came up quickly. There was a pair of golden hiking boots which had traversed 3 continents and a funny Findlingstein (glacial boulder) made out of a cage of wire. By crawling through a small hole at the back, four of us clambered inside like pet rabbits.
Already at this point in the hike, the trail had gone through various types of landscapes: fields, meadows, and deciduous and pine forests. We were just at the beginning of our tour but it was already showing its five stars.
Schlamau and Schmerwitz
Directly after the Findling, we found ourselves in Schlamau, which contained its own peculiar works of art. The next sculpture was on the way to Schmerwitz, called Pflanzenlabyrinth. Plant Labyrinth had us wondering if the stones placed on top were original parts of the exhibit or later additions. Schmerwitz was more than I expected. There was an old manor house in the process of refurbishment, a nice pond with gazebo, an old brick church, and a newly renovated Marktplatz. Unfortunately we missed the next artwork, probably because we were having such a good time chatting.
Pflanzenlabyrinth 
Gut Schmerwitz, or the Schmerwitz Estate
On the border of two fields we came across a giant wooden-spoon-like sculpture, part of a trio instillation. We tried to throw rocks through the hole, but no one made it, and we only later read that this was actually an intention of the artwork. The sculpture has strings on the back which should produce a sound in the wind, but we didn’t hear anything while on our hike. Then next sculpture with many impossible-to-reach water pumps represented the dryness of the region and importance of water.
Wandlungen zwischen Wunder punkten 
Ein Wasserfall für den Fläming – A Waterfall for Fläming
Before getting to Hagelberg, there is an opportunity to turn right and make a roundtrip hike back to Wiesenburg. We decided to continue on the north route of the art trail towards Bad Belzig. Exiting Hagelberg is a sculpture which doesn’t disappoint. Its name tells you everything you need to know: Steinschlange – stone snake.
Into the Woods
Again in the forest, we came upon the next artwork, Die Jagd, or The Hunt. Deer and dog were nearly invisible, blending in with the bare trees around them. I could imagine them popping out of the bright green backdrop of spring or summer, or leaping out of the snow in winter (if we ever get some).
The forest changed another time into pines, where we met the artwork Unter Kiefern, Under Pines. This was probably my favorite sculpture of the trip, being a mathematician. The diagonal lines of the cubes play with the structured vertical lines of the trees.
Further into the forest, just before Bad Belzig, we reached Intermezzo, a strange artwork of black bands on white birch trees. The bands grow with the trees and eventually burst when the trunk gets too big. Like the previous work of art, this one seeks to play with the black and white colors, as well as the vertical lines of trees with that of the horizontal bands.
Bad Belzig
The south route joins the north route as you enter Bad Belzig. This is where we realized we had about 20 minutes to get the next train or narrowly miss it, so we picked up the pace for the last part of the hike. We came upon the castle, and although I was drooling to visit, we had to press on. The path seemed like it was zigzagging across and under the railroad tracks insensibly, but in the end it was worth it. After going through another tunnel, we came up just one last hill to a fantastic view of Bad Belzig. I snapped a picture before rushing off with the others to the station, getting to the platform as the train was pulling up.
The South Route
Having completed the north route, I was craving to see what wonders awaited us on the south route of the Kunstwanderweg and was also itching to visit the Burg in Bad Belzig! A few weeks later my needs were satisfied when we took another morning train to Wiesenburg.
K(uier)en
This was one of the top reasons we wanted to do the rest of this hike. While on the north route of the Kunstwanderweg, the information boards had some pictures of the art works on them and this was one I was dying to see! The Dutch artist made a play on words with Uier for utter and Kuieren for going walking. We could already see the art piece from across the field and my excitement was burning. I mean, doesn’t this picture make you want to see it too!?
The Best Art
Having finally seen what I had been so excited about, I wondered if the rest of the hike would live up to my new expectations. If I am honest, the hiking part of the hike was mostly one star and only sometimes an interesting four star section. But what I did really enjoy about the south route was the art. I found that I just liked these sculptures more so than the ones on the north route (although the north route is definitely a five star hike regardless of the art).
The next two sculptures really enamored me. I just loved the 3 wolves howling, prowling, and chilling together. And the “Resting Bridge” had me laughing. The other works were interesting as well. The physics of the piece “Leaning On” were a curiosity. There was also Fünf Kuben which were five crates out of old railroad materials. And the concrete slab with plants to represent agriculture’s importance in Brandenburg, although all I could see were turkey feet. In Bad Belzig, we even got the chance to check out the last three sculptures which we had missed the previous time.
Ruhende Brücke 
Line Up 
Gartenbild
Burg Eisenhardt
The castle in Bad Belzig dates back to 997! Like many buildings that old, it has served a multitude of purposes, but currently it serves mostly as hotel, restaurant, café, and event location. For less than 5€, both C and I could visit the small museum and go up in the tower.
The museum is a collection of random artifacts from the last 300 years. There are some older archaeological finds, including skeletons from the middle ages when the average person lived to the age of 26. Upstairs there are artifacts from various battles including a large model of the Battle of Hagelberg in 1813 against Napoleon. In the small room behind the stairs there are a few documents and letters containing memories of the concentration camp Belzig/Roederhof.
Outside, we walked along the ramparts and went in the various round defense towers. To end our visit, we ascended the tower – which had more flights of stairs than I had expected (C agreed!). From the top we had a nice view of the old town.
Do. This. Hike!
The Kunstwanderweg from Wiesenburg to Bad Belzig is 100% recommendable! The north route offers such beautiful and varied landscapes which are enjoyable and interesting the whole way. Both routes display numerous sculptures, many of which invite you to think about their relation to nature, people, and the regions of Fläming and greater Brandenburg. The well-marked path makes this an easy day trip for any ambitious hiker (at 17-21km it is a full day). Needless to say, I highly recommend this hike!