Cuijk, Gennep and Boxmeer

Cuijk is situated on the Maas, an elongated village that continued to expand and took up more of the bank. To the south, the swamp forests form a gateway to the hamlet and nature reserve Zevenhutten, which covers 85 hectares. Coppice forests and fields on beautiful wooded belts predominate here. The trees attract various breeding birds to Zevenhutten. The yellowhammer, the nightingale, the blackcap and the whitethroat are birds that like to build their nests in the bushes along the fields. According to an interesting legend, Cuijk once had city rights, but the village sold them to Grave. There is no actual evidence for this story. Nevertheless, Grave is now a city, and Cuijk is often still referred to as a'former city\\\'.

In the former city you can see the Jan van Cuijk mill. This brick belt corn mill was built in 1860 and has the status of National Monument. The mill was mainly used to grind corn and since 1942 the sails have been equipped with the Bussel System on both rods. Since 1945 the mill has been equipped with brake valves. Volunteer millers regularly operate the mill on Saturdays. In Boxmeer you can see another interesting building. In the past this was a real fortress, with a view over the Maas, but after several sieges and destructions a noble country house was built on this site of the castle. In this building noble and religious worlds come together: nowadays the history and the prominent former owners are highlighted and a picture is given of the lifestyle of the current pious residents.