Warnsveld, Zutphen and Gorssel

There is a small town in the municipality of Lochem that has less than 4,000 inhabitants: Gorssel. Experience the conviviality of a close-knit, small-scale community where the family grave of the founders of the Kluwer publishing group is located. If you look for the floodplains of the IJssel from Gorssel, you will come to the stork village't Zand. Southeast of the Gorssel you will find the Gorsselse Heide, which served as a military shooting and training area for decades. Since 2009, the new manager of the Marke Gorsselse Heide Foundation has conceived the plan to restore the Gorsselse Heide to its former glory. The wet heath was in danger of drying out. There used to be extensive heathlands here that were used by farmers in the area for various purposes, but nowadays there are also forests to be seen. About a hundred years ago there were mainly pine trees, but the coniferous forest is slowly developing into a mixed deciduous forest, where birch and oak also grow. Common shrubs are the buckthorn and the rowan. In the sand, colonies of red wood ants work hard to please their queens and, in addition to the drumming of the woodpeckers, several songbirds whistle the highest song, while the hawk and the buzzard are formidable hunters. Beautiful buildings can be visited during this cycle tour. An architectural masterpiece is Huis De Voorst, which is located just east of Zutphen. The house has a rectangular corps-de-logis. Curved galleries connect the central part with the buildings that flank the building. The house was built in the seventeenth century, and the ravages of time have seriously affected the original design of the gardens: only a few avenues remain. In 1943 a fire broke out, which destroyed a large part of the main building. The castle was restored in 1960. The other beautiful building that is perfect for a photo is Huis't Velde. The first mention of the beautiful white country house comes from 1326, but the foundation of the current house was only created in the sixteenth century. The owners had the house renovated around 1597: the east wing and the octagonal tower at the front were the result. The house is now used by the Police Academy and is therefore not open to the public.