From the Malpie towards Casteren and back!

This route is also fun to do with children, with a visit to the Eicha Museum, but adults will enjoy all the beauty that can be seen along the way just as much.

The green surroundings of the Brabantse Kempen are a wonderful place for a bike ride. Between the villages of Veldhoven, Valkenswaard and Casteren you will find the heathlands of De Malpie. There are mysterious fens in the fields. The soil types are varied in the area and therefore the fens have different sizes and depths. The waters boost the growth of plants and the populations of large and small animals. Plants such as round sundew, bell gentian, tormentil and devil's thread grow between cap and shrub heather, but you can also see vegetation on the fens in the form of water lobelia and floating hedgehog's head.

Have you ever wondered what the Romans ate? Or how the reindeer hunters survived? Then stop at the Eicha Museum! Film projections tell the story behind various objects on display. You can look through the glass floor and see the imprints of the buildings of the past and the underground medieval well is also very special!

The history of the mill dates back to 1350, when the Abbey of Echternach was still the owner of the building. The flour mill has stood the test of time for centuries, but was destroyed by a storm in 1962. Architect Ad van Empel rebuilt the mill, the western part of which was completed in 1992, but the eastern part, which was rebuilt in 1994, was destroyed by fire a year later. Nowadays the mill is used to generate electricity.

The last attraction presents itself on the edge of Valkenswaard. The exact year of construction of this water mill on the Dommel is unknown, but the first mention of the historic building goes back to 1227. At that time, the Venbergsemolen was owned by a sister order. The watermill fell into disrepair and was extensively restored in 1895 and 1977. The mill runs regularly in the summer, but it no longer really grinds.