Round Millingerwaard

Get a breath of fresh air on the water around Millingen and Doornenburg on the other bank. You can enjoy the beautiful river dune to the fullest. The soft lapping of the water is music to your ears while you cycle safely on your bike. De Millingerwaard is located in the heart of the Gelderse Poort. The nature reserve is given space and this is clearly noticeable in the diversity of vegetation. With an area of 700 hectares, the Millingerwaard offers sufficient living space for large grazers. Whole herds of Konik horses, Galloway cattle, deer and beavers maintain nature.  For your own safety, keep a sufficient distance from these wild animals and certainly do not try to pet them.

On this soil the trees grow so quickly that without the help of these animals the area would be impassable within 10 years. Famous in the Millingerwaard is the Colenbrandersbos located on the shore, a last hardwood forest. If you look closely you will see that many shrubs are overgrown with vines and hops, which is typical of hardwood riparian forests. The route starts at the De Zeelandsche Hof terp farm where you can park your car safely and for free. After 6 km, the first sight of the route appears: the Kekerdom belt mill De Duffelt from 1868. Each mill sends a message with the position of its blades. Van De Duffelt is known from the position of the blades of "De Duffelt" which could be read when the border was safe for smugglers. Nowadays we can see by the blue miller's pennant whether we are welcome at the mill.

The route takes you past the robust monumental De Doornenburg Castle. The castle has the largest outer bailey in the Netherlands and is connected to the main castle by a wooden bridge. The farm within the walls is also unique in our country. As far as we know, De Doornenburg Castle has never been captured by siege. The last resident of the castle died in 1847 and after that it fell into serious disrepair. Years of restoration began in 1937, but the owner was not allowed to enjoy it for long. During the Second World War, the castle was seriously damaged by the English air force because the Germans used the castle as a headquarters. Shortly after the liberation, the castle was gradually restored. This time, renovating the castle took 20 years and lasted until 1966. Nowadays you can get acquainted with the Middle Ages in the museum.