The Stadtwaldsee (''City Forest Lake'') is an excavation lake in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It is commonly known as the Unisee (''University Lake'') due to its proximity to

Bremen University The University of Bremen (German: ''Universität Bremen'') is a public university in Bremen, Germany, with approximately 23,500 people from 115 countries. It is one of 11 institutions which were successful in the category "Institutional Strategi ...

. At an elevation of , its surface area is .

Location

The lake is located in the Horn-Lehe district of Bremen, north of Bürgerpark (the main city park) and the Stadtwald (''city forest'') between Technologiepark Bremen (''Bremen Technology Park'') and Bundesautobahn 27 in the north.

Features and usage

On the northeastern shore is the so-called "Uni-Wildnis", a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

, a

nude beach A nude beach, sometimes called a clothing-optional or free beach, is a beach where users are at liberty to be nudity, nude. Nude beaches usually have mixed bathing. Such beaches are usually on public lands, and any member of the public is allow ...

and, somewhat further west, the camping ground "HanseCamping Bremen". To the southeast, on the shore closest to the university, lies a grassy recreational area with a

sand beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shel ...

that is open to the public for swimming. There are occasional

concerts A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...

and open air events in this area. The western end of the lake is currently used by

windsurfers Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

, anglers and divers. A water-skiing facility being planned in 2005 and 2007 caused a dispute. A citizens' initiative and a majority of the City Advisory Council on one side were in opposition to the Ministry for Interior and Sport (the potential operator) on the other side. Several investors plan to build hotels or wellness facilities against the will of the local residents on the north-eastern part of the lake. In summer, the water often develops an

algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...

buildup, so the lake must occasionally be closed to swimmers.

History

The lake and the nature reserve were created by sand extraction during the development of the A 27 motorway and the construction of the university.

Public transport access

The bus stops of ''Wetterungsweg'', ''Campingplatz'', and ''Stadtwaldsee'' on bus line 28 of the Bremer Straßenbahn AG are all near the northwest shore of the lake.

Location

Features and usage

History

Public transport access

See also