Tagebauaussichtspunkt Schophoven

The Schophoven viewing point offers visitors an impressive view of the Inden open-cast mine and its active extraction site. It is located on the eastern edge of the open-cast mine near the village of Schophoven and allows visitors to observe the progress of lignite mining to the south from a safe distance. Large-scale mining equipment, extensive open-cast mine terraces and the impressive depth of the open-cast mine make the dimensions of human intervention in the landscape visible.

The viewing point combines nature experience and knowledge transfer: several information boards explain the extraction of lignite, the operation of the open-cast mine and perspectives for the time after extraction. This makes Schophoven not only a place to linger, but also a place of learning about energy extraction, recultivation and the transformation of the Rhenish mining area. Seating and a barrier-free design invite visitors to enjoy the view in peace and quiet and experience the changes to the landscape in a comprehensible way.the narrative figure, a mother from Inden, talks about her lost home.

A narrator summarizes: "First my home, then the open-cast mine, in 20 years ships: there is probably no other place where the concept of 'change' is as tangible and yet as abstract as here." Her village was once located in the middle of today's open-cast mine and was excavated. Lignite mining will end in 2030, when the large hole will be filled with water and in a few years' time, the flooded Hambach and Garzweiler open-cast mines will create a huge lake landscape.