Cycling along the Veersemeer and the North Sea

There is a peninsula in the western part of Zeeland where you can enjoy the vastness of the province while cycling through the landscape. You can see the North Sea, the Western Scheldt and the Veerse Meer. Around the twenty-two kilometer long Veerse Meer, you can enjoy picturesque villages, old mills and a beautiful view over the water. The width of the brackish water lake varies between 150 and 1500 meters and in the deepest places the lake is up to 25 meters deep. The total water surface is 2030 hectares and the lake contains thirteen islands. The Veerse Meer was created by the damming of the Veerse Gat, when the Delta Works were constructed. Until 1969, the management of the lake was in the hands of the Delta Service. The brackish water, with varying salinity, is one of the few places in the Netherlands where the Zuiderzee crab and the trumpet lime tubeworm, as well as eel bread, occur. Thousands of rainbow and brown trout are stocked here every year. Sailors, anglers, recreational divers, surfers, water skiers and canoeists come to enjoy themselves on and in the lake. Westhove Castle is also located in Oostkapelle. This castle is largely freely accessible and a real tourist attraction. It used to serve as a country house for prominent Zeeland families and from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century it was the property of the Middelburg abbey. During the Eighty Years' War it fell into the hands of the Water Beggars. Unfortunately, a large part of the castle was lost due to fire. What you can still see now are the buildings of the actual outer bailey. But regardless, it remains a beautiful and romantic image of a medieval castle.