White sails – Bitterfeld, the town by the sea
Not just words to enthuse his guests at the “2Water Wassersportzentrum”. “You have to imagine, the Bitterfeld-Wolfen region was the dirtiest region in the whole of Europe 20 years ago. In the truest sense of the word it stank to high heaven. And today we’re sailing under white sails on the twelve square kilometre Goitzsche-See.” Anyone driving on the B100 from Bitterfeld towards Dübener Heide often gets the impression that the town is on the sea.
Where more than 30,000 tonnes of brown coal were once mined daily and the stinking chimneys of the chemical plants in Wolfen and Bitterfeld once dominated the view, the former mining landscape in Goitzsche has developed into a Mecca for water sport, leisure and tourism. A dream also came true for Jörg Pietzsch. Not only does he rent out pedalos, catamarans and sailing dinghies in the season from April to October. Anyone who sits on the school bench can get their official sports boat licence for yachts and motorboats on the Bitterfeld lake.
“I discovered the lake more or less by accident through an acquaintance. I had already intensively followed the creation and marketing of the Leipzig lake landscape. After all, I studied in Leipzig. Thus I immediately made contact with the EBV operating company and the Goitzsche adventure began in 2005. Because the harbour was just being conceived and they needed a harbour master,” explains Jörg Pietzsch. Since then he has not only taken on this job and looked after the 111 berths, which have all been let incidentally. He also founded his 2Water Wassersportzentrum and demand is continually increasing. He is particular proud of the authorisation to give water sport enthusiasts the possibility to get their motorboat licence. “Because sailing motorboats is prohibited on our lake. But because over 70 per cent of all water sports enthusiasts are motorboat sailors a large clientele would have been denied to me. If you include the Pouch peninsula and the adjacent Dübener, the Bitterfeld/ Wolfen leisure area can hardly be beaten,” says Torsten Pietzsch, who has also decided on the lake landscape in his private life and has moved to the Mühlbeck area from Leipzig with his family. Because on this side, opposite the beach promenade with the Pegelturm tower, the region’s landmark, young people in particular get their money’s worth. A surf school opened recently on Mühlbeck beach, you can also learn catamaran sailing and you can even receive instruction in raft building from Jörg Pietzsch.
Author: Dagmar Perschke
Contact:
2Water Wassersportzentrum
Seepromenade 3
06749 Bitterfeld