Lekkerkerk, Kinderdijk and Schoonhoven

Get a breath of fresh air along the banks of the river Lek and experience with your own eyes how the polders were cultivated and maintained. The first stream of the Lek arose around 200 BC, but the stream only really became active around the year zero, when it started to drain water from the Rhine. When the original Rhine course was dammed in 1122, the Lek began to resemble the undulating main stream it is today. The first written sources mentioning the river date from the second half of the eighth and the first half of the tenth century. Then the watercourses are referred to as'Lokkia(m)\\\' and'Loccham\\\'. The mysterious depth and power of the river determines the atmosphere during your bike ride. When you think of Alblasserdam as a cyclist, it is almost inevitable that you think of windmills. The vast peat area is intersected by ditches, canals and two small rivers: the Alblas and the Giessen. The area derives its characteristic, historical identity in particular from the many windmills along the Kinderdijk in Nieuw-Lekkerland. All these windmills are on the World Heritage List and are iconic for the area. The mills ensured that the excess water, which reached the Alblasserwaard when flooding occurred, was pumped upwards. It was then discharged into the river through sluices. In World War II, this even happened without electrical assistance. You can park your car at Profile Hoogenboezem in Lekkerkerk. Take the opportunity to service your bike to ensure that you are safe on the road. Don't forget to show your bicycle discount pass, because with that you get a 10 euro discount on repairs and maintenance of your steel horse at the Profile Hoogeboezem. The tour leads you along the banks of the river to Krimpen aan de Lek. Here you see an old water tower. The tower was built in 1909 in a traditional craftsman style. Neo-Renaissance motifs are applied to the facade. This beautiful national monument is more than 47 meters high and can store 250 m3 of water. Via the many windmills that you see on the Kinderdijk, you cycle to Streefkerk, where you see the Broekmolen. This polder mill is also beautiful to see. The seesaw mill was built in 1581 and has an open paddle wheel. Until 1951, the Broekmolen faithfully performed its function of draining the polder of Streefkerk. The Oude Weteringmolen, which you will encounter a little less than a kilometer away, is also a seesaw mill. This mill assisted the Broekmolen in draining the Streefkerk polder, but it also drained the Kortenbroek polder. The Oude Weteringmolen was built before 1751 and was also in operation until 1951. The last windmill you encounter before you cross the Lek again and cycle back to Lekkerkerk is De Liefde. The mill is also called'In Love Turning\\\' and was previously called'De Hoop\\\'. It is an octagonal tower mill from 1893, which has a wooden substructure. De Liefde was built to replace an octagonal ground sail that went up in flames and was in operation until about 1970. Unlike the other mills, this mill ground grain.