Explore the Weerribben from Giethoorn National Park

Extensive reed fields, flowery hay fields, quiet lakes and large ponds: that is what you can expect in the Giethoorn area. Of course you also cycle through Giethoorn itself, which is also called the Venice of the North. With its many bridges and waterways, this picturesque water village is an experience in itself. To transport the extracted peat, canals and ditches were dug here. This created small islands on which houses were built that can only be reached via bridges. There are dozens of characteristic national monuments in Giethoorn. The only continuous connection over land is a cycling and walking path that runs straight through the village. Much traffic takes place over the water, via so-called punts that - just like the gondolas in Venice - are propelled by a punt boom.
You continue through the polders to the Weerribben-Wieden National Park, the largest peat bog in Western Europe. This polder area has been extensively excavated due to peat extraction, creating dense swamps. With 35 square kilometers of open water, reedlands and swamp forests, De Weerribben is a natural habitat for many birds, mammals and insect species. Water lilies, crabgrass or water hemlock grow and bloom on the ponds, fens and lakes, but you also see large masses of the carnivorous plant bladderwort floating. In the reedlands, where the soil acidifies quickly, colorful fireweeds, skullcap, bindweed and marsh buckthorn stand out. Where the soil has acidified, heather, peat moss, sundew and marsh leaf grow and the forests consist largely of alder, birch and rowan. Deer, foxes and otters survive on what De Weerribben has to offer, but the area also has plenty of opportunities to survive for birds such as the cormorant, the curlew, the bittern, the golden oriole, the black tern and the purple heron. The marsh harrier and rare short-eared owl also hunt their prey here.
A wide variety of butterflies and dragonflies flit from plant to plant in the watery, boggy environment. I would definitely stop at the visitor center'De Weerribben\\\'. The visitor center has a wealth of information about the nature reserve and the animals that live there. You can also learn more about the duck decoys in the area and the way De Weerribben is managed. In the'ervarium\\\' you will experience how the seasons influence De Weerribben.
During the route you will pass several old-fashioned dyers' houses, the former homes of peat cutters. You also pass through small centers with names such as Wetering, Ossenzijl, Kalenberg, Dwarsgracht, and the Netherlands (through which only a road runs) which was only accessible by boat until the late 1950s.