Impressive natural beauty in Friesland

Water is central to this route: for seventy kilometers you can enjoy channels, canals, weterings, gullies, fens and other waterways. In the polders you can admire a vast landscape with a characteristic village here and there. The Dutch polders are an interesting example of water management. On the route you will therefore regularly encounter watercourses, ditches that can flow well to regulate the water level.

Special flora and fauna
On this route you will explore the northern part of De Alde Feanen National Park and the polder area that extends above it. The varied area has a lot to offer nature lovers, such as swamp forests, fens and thickets. The low peat bog covers almost 4000 hectares and is home to thousands of animals. More than twenty different species of fish live in the waters and one hundred different bird species can be admired on the banks and in the grasslands, including the rare purple heron and bittern. But the variety of plants in this area is also enormous. Different types of sedge, valerian, pool rue, hairy fireweed, queenweed and meadowsweet are just a few of the beautiful flora in the area. The route starts and ends at Hotel Restaurant Princenhof. The hotel is located in the small Frisian village of Earnewâld and overlooks the De Alde Feanen nature reserve.

Windmill Swarte Prinsch
Are you in for something other than all the natural beauty on the route? Then take a look at windmill Swarte Prinsch. This ground sailer, a windmill that can be operated from the ground, was built in 1900 and is also known as'De Lytse Geast\\\'. The mill was built to drain the Ouddeel polder. Since 1960, the mill is no longer used for its original purpose, but it is used privately as a home. Spectators can only view the outside of the mill, but it is possible to rent the mill as a holiday home.