From Schoonloo to the hunebedden

Imposing tree-lined avenues and cobblestone roads that were laid out at the beginning of the twentieth century: in the forests of Exloo, Gieten and Borger, natural and artificial landscape elements alternate in rapid succession. You can discover more than fifty different types of trees and shrubs if you pay attention and sundew and peat moss grow around romantic fens. Woodpeckers drum on the tree trunks while owls and badgers become active around dusk. The lucky cyclist just sees a skittish deer darting away through the bushes. Vipers, moor frogs and the viviparous lizard bask in drier areas of heathland. The watchtower on the border with forestry Odoorn offers a fantastic view over the sea of trees. Beyond Exloo, in the middle of the Exloo forestry, is dolmen D30 that once had three capstones, but of which only three are still present. There are still two gate stones, which make it clear where the gate must have been, and shards of what must have been more than sixty pots were found in the cellar. Burnt human bones and an arrowhead have also been found. The latter is a find that is extremely special at a hunebed in the Netherlands. Two hundred meters further you will also see dolmen D29. The two huge flat capstones are especially eye-catching. Originally there were probably three. The wreath stones are also missing. Through the two clear gate stones you can still clearly see where the entrance to the stone grave used to be. Hunebed D21 to Hunebed D25 are all very close together. Hunebed D23 is in the worst shape: there is only one capstone left that is supported by smaller capstones and one capstone has fallen off the supporting stones. The hunebed is almost no longer recognizable as such, but the fact that the other hunebeds are at such a short distance does ring a bell.

Hunebed D24 also looks sad. The stone grave is slightly larger than its dilapidated brother D23, but because they are so close together, it is still an impressive whole. The smallest of the bunch, and of the whole of the Netherlands, is Hunebed D22. In 1918, the hunebed was subjected to extensive research, during which 41 pieces of pottery were excavated. Finally, you will find hunebed D19 on the route, which is close to Hunebed D20. D19 is recognizable because it is larger and is missing a number of capstones. Through the four gate stones that have remained, you can see where the gate used to be. More than four hundred finds have been made at this dolmen, varying from pots to copper strips. These strips are the oldest metal objects ever excavated in the Netherlands.

What is special is that the wreath stones of Hunebed D20 have largely been preserved. Fewer pottery remains were excavated here than at D19, when the two dolmens were archaeologically investigated. If you want more information about the stone giants, you can go to the National Hunebedden Information Center.