Crafts and delicacies in North Groningen

Warffum is a very old village, with a history dating back to the sixth century BC. The village was then still right on the coast. The first inhabitants were farmers who settled on the large, high salt marsh. To protect themselves sufficiently against danger from the sea, the early Warffumers raised their residences. Artificial hills were created, raised to have a dry place at high tide. A number of these wierden were connected to each other.

This is how the wierde village of Warffum was created, surrounded by a wreath of house wierden. In terms of size and height, Warffum is one of the largest wierde villages in the Netherlands. It was not until around 1200 that the first dikes were built in this area.

Justice was also administered early in Warffum. Warf is an old Frisian word for a popular assembly where justice was administered. Another explanation for the place name Warffum is warf in the sense of height or elevation and um as heem or place of residence. In the case of Warffum, a combination of both explanations is also possible: an elevated place where justice is administered.

The first church was built here as early as the 11th century, but the current church tower of Warffum dates from 1638. This approximately 45-metre-high tower with a wind vane in the shape of a seahorse is an important landmark. The pastor who lived in the Weem or vicarage farm was an important person in the village. The medieval Weem van Warffum - now Pastorieweg 24 - has been preserved and beautifully restored. Enjoy the windmill De Lelie, a beautiful windmill in this area.

But of course Pieterburen is best known for the SRRC. Since the establishment of the SRRC in 1971, Lenie't Hart has been taking care of sick and injured seals in Pieterburen. The sanctuary has now developed from a simple shelter for young seals into a scientific research-based seal hospital that works with all associated facilities such as quarantines, a laboratory, a pharmacy and all conceivable research equipment. All seals collected are released back into the sea after a stay of a few weeks to a maximum of a few months. No animal remains in captivity and seals are certainly not bred.

Then you continue cycling through small hamlets to Houwerzijl, on the edge of the Lauwersmeer National Park. Here too you can get off for a special address: De Theefabriek, a unique combination of the only tea museum in the Netherlands, an atmospheric tearoom with perhaps the most extensive tea menu in the world and a fragrant tea shop... a paradise for tea lovers!

De Theefabriek is located in the former church and parsonage of the picturesque village, bought in 1989 for the symbolic amount of 1 guilder (45 euro cents) and has now grown into a true tea attraction that attracts approximately 50,000 visitors every year.

We will stay in culinary spheres for a while, because a little further on, in the nice Eenrum, you will learn where Abraham gets his mustard: at Abrahams Mosterdmakerij! Many people don't know how mustard is made, but Abrahams Mosterdmakerij gives the answer. After a visit, you can dine in the adjacent restaurant, where of course the traditionally made mustard is not missing!

If you are looking for a romantic candle for the table to enjoy your mustard and tea, you can make candles yourself at Kaarsenmakerij Wilhelmus in all kinds of colors and sizes. Under the guidance of expert help you make the most beautiful candles. Moreover, you can ask anything, so that afterwards you also know everything about this craft. You can enjoy the afterglow at home: you can take the homemade candles with you!

Also take a look at the Laurentius Church. A large church for a small village, surrounded by a cemetery on a mound. Built largely of brick in the 13th century in Romano-Gothic style. Of the original entrances, only the southern one remains. As a beacon of more than 50 meters high, there is the 17th century tower.

If you fancy one last visit, take a look inside De Kleine Plantage, a small-scale nursery with gardens located on the Groningen Hoogeland, just outside the village of Eenrum. In more than 25 years, Eric Spruit and Fleur van Zonneveld have turned De Kleine Plantage into a leading nursery, known far beyond the borders. Typical for De Kleine Plantage is the combination of garden and nursery. The many special plants that are cultivated can be admired in their mature form in the gardens and on the mother beds. The perennials they offer have a natural appearance, show a harmonious relationship between leaf, flower and growth habit.