Tour of Groningen

Cycling is wonderful in the surroundings of the city of Groningen. This route takes you through the open and watery landscape south and west of the city. You drive past the Hoornse Meer and the Paterswoldsemeer, through De Onlanden and through picturesque towns such as Paterswolde and Peize. You drive through the province of Drenthe for a large part of the route!

From a park-like neighborhood in Groningen you drive along the Hoornse Meer, which was created in the 1970s by sand extraction. This sand was used, among other things, in the construction of the A7. A little later you will drive past the adjacent Paterswoldsemeer, which was created in the sixteenth century by the excavation of peat. You pass De Helper, a polder mill from 1863. The mill was originally at a different location to drain the Helpmanpolder. In 1971, the then dilapidated mill was moved to its current location.

A little further on you drive through Paterswolde, which enjoys a protected village view thanks to the many beautiful old buildings. There was a manor on the Lemferdinge estate from the fifteenth to the nineteenth century. The current mansion is the former treasure house of this demolished manor. Around the house there is a park forest and several centuries-old gardens.

In the esdorp Peize you can see the Paiser Meul, a flour mill from 1898. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the village was known for hop cultivation. The hops were mainly purchased by brewers from nearby Groningen. The name of the Hoppekampweg that you cross refers to this history.