Wassergarten der Grube Reden — Attraction in Schiffweiler

Came here today with a friend and our combined children ages 6,6, 4, and 2 years old on a warm but rainy/overcast August 2022 afternoon. I had assumed based on a quick look at the satellite view on Google Maps that this was a very small garden with a few waterfalls to walk through. I was mistaken - this is a very large garden with a few waterfalls to walk through, set in what appears to be a former industrial/mining complex.

We parked in the parkplatz across the stree from the garden on Am Bergwerk Reden, which is a medium sized free lot. After crossing the street, we followed signs for the Wassergarten and then entered the "start" of the garden via a (currently non-functioning) elevator or 2-level staircase down into main level of the garden. At first glance, it appears you're in what might have been a basement of a warehouse of some sort, with an empty metal frame of a building looming above you but then rock walls with filled in stone archway behind you, and in between, pools of water with lilly pads and cattails and tiny fish and whatnot, not to mention a somewhat unpleasant odor. From here you follow the paths northeast (the only way to go) and eventually realize that the garden is much bigger than you thought it was, and find the small corner of it that has the waterfalls and stepping stones (labeled "Mosesgang" on Google Maps), which are a bit slimy and slippery, though this part of the path is by far the most picturesue in the garden and our kids' favorite. We continued walking, hoping there would be more paths like that, but we just continued to find more pools of water, lots of ducks and birds, and rock paths and eventually we turned around. We were here for about 1 hour total. I wish we had known about this place previously, as we'd visited Gondwana Praehistorium a few months ago not realizing they are literally adjacent to each other. As such, the two together would make a great combined day trip, and you can indeed access the park via a walking path or a staircase from the Gondwana parking lot, you will just enter the park from the opposite side.

Overall, this is a unique garten/park that has a ton of potential, but falls short just a little. The vast majority of the park are these pools with lily pads and reeds, with only one small segment of waterfalls/stepping stones and a few nice bridges to walk over. There are no playgrounds (aside from a single large sand pit), minimal benches, and not great ambiance as the cool modern industrial theme gets somewhat drowned out by the chemical and moldy stench of the water and the feel that the area may house homeless people overnight, though there wasn't any garbage or homeless people around while we were there - just that feeling. Since we had been to Gondwana previously, we combined this trip with a visit to Itzenplitzer Weiher (a walk around a nice pond) and the Westernspielplatz (western themed playground for the kids). The garden is minimally shaded, nor are there any food or water kiosks within it, nor did we see any restaurants or cafes on our walk from the lot to the garden. I imagine a stroller would be just fine in the park, as long as you don't mind taking it down stairs if the elevator is still out, or walking to the Gondwana entrance and going down the road to the garden. It's mostly safe, though I'm sure kids could slip and or lean too far and fall into the water, but I don't remember it being more than a foot or so deep in any location. I wouldn't drive more than 30 minutes for this unless you were combining it with other destinations...

Visited with my three kids during their Spring Break. This place was really nice to see, although my kids just enjoyed the “waterfall” part. My 6 year old took an accidental “dip” while trying to jump across the stones. It made for the best laugh that we will remember for years to come. I personally thought this place was very cool and industrial looking. I’m glad we had the opportunity to see it...

1995 nach dem Ende des Bergbaus in Landsweiler-Reden wurde die Grube Reden Stück für Stück zu einem Erlebnisort umgebaut. So entstanden die Wassergärten der alten Grube Reden, bei der über mehrere kaskadenartige Wasserbecken Wasser dahinfließt. Dabei gibt es Wasserbecken mit Binsen und Seerosen. Teilweise handelt es sich bei dem Wasser um warmes Grubenwasser, das aus den Tiefen des Bergwerks gepumpt wird. Ein besonderes Highlight ist der sogenannte Mosesgang: dabei plätschert das warme Wasser beidseitig von Wänden hinab und man kann diesen Wasserbereich über Trittsteine durchqueren. In den warmen Wassern fühlen sich kleine Zierfische sehr wohl, die wohl jemand dort man ausgesetzt hat. Mittlerweile haben sie sich ordentlich vermehrt! 😉 Die Wassergärten sind über Treppenanlagen oder aber über Rampen erreichbar. Das ganze Areal ist jederzeit frei zugänglich. Es lohnt...