Peat village route Groote Peel and Mariapeel

The starting point of this route is Hotel Eetcafé In D\\\'ouwe Peel in Helenaveen. From here you drive along the edge of the Groote Peel. You also drive a bit through the Dennendijkse Bossen, a relatively young nature reserve with Scots pine and Norway spruce. After the authentic village of Liessel you come to the Deurnsche Peel and the Mariapeel. In the past, these areas together formed an extensive raised bog landscape. Helenaveen was specially constructed for the extraction of raised peat, also known as 'black gold'. Nowadays, attempts are being made to make the area around Helenaveen wetter again, so that the raised bog can recover. Large numbers of cranes regularly land here during the migration season. You also pass through Griendtsveen, together with Helenaveen, the only two peat colonies in the southern Netherlands. Both towns enjoy a protected village view.