Outer Alster

The Outer Alster is a 164-hectare urban lake created in the 17th century when a weir backed up the Alster river, and today it is flanked by the leafy residential quarters of Harvestehude and Uhlenhorst. The lake originally powered Hamburg's grain mills; its parkland shores were only landscaped into their present form during the 19th century. A 7.5-kilometre loop path around the lake serves as Hamburg's most popular running and cycling circuit, while sailing dinghies, rowing boats, and pedal boats fill the water on warmer days. The Alster steamboat line connects the lake to the Inner Alster and the city's canal network, offering a distinctly Hamburg way to move through the city. In autumn, thick fog settles over the water and muffles the surrounding city into near silence.

Dammed urban lake with sailing schools and rowboats, plus a 7-km loop walk under century-old lindens.