Enkhuizen, Hoorn and Oosterleek

Beautiful fields color the surroundings of Enkhuizen, Hoorn and Oosterleek yellow, red, purple, white and pink. In the endless seas of colorful bulb fields, different types of tulips, daffodils and hyacinths in the spring and gladioli, dahlias, carnations and asters in the late summer wave at you as you cycle past. The route starts in"Herring City\\\", the appropriate nickname that Enkhuizen received in the Middle Ages because of its past as a center for herring fishing. The city has now grown into an important tourist center with a focus on water: you will see marinas that promote recreation on the IJsselmeer and the Markermeer, and the Zuiderzee Museum is also located in the town. You depart from De Port van Cleve in a south-westerly direction and eventually encounter the first sight of this tour in Oosterblok. You cannot overlook it, because the De Krijgsman tower mill dominates its surroundings. The mill was built in 1897 on the spot where two other mills previously stood. The first was destroyed by a storm in 1862, the second burned in 1896 when lightning struck. Although the mill was out of action between 1925 and 1934, the mill can still grind grain. This is done on a voluntary basis. The mill can be visited on Tuesday afternoon, Saturday morning and all day on Fridays. You cycle to the hamlet of Schellinkhout, where you see the Groote Molen (Great Mill) standing along the foothills of the Markermeer. The exact year of construction of the mill is unknown, but it is estimated that the mill was designed and built between 1603 and 1638. The polder mill is an octagonal ground sail that is covered with reeds. The mill has an Old Dutch sail cross, a windmill with wooden rollers and a Flemish vang.