Discover beautiful Westerbork

With this cycle route you will explore central Drenthe between the towns of Beilen and Westerbork. It is a nice quiet area with wide views, interspersed by small heaths. You may immediately associate Westerbork with Camp Westerbork. The so-called'transit camp\\' at the time of the Second World War was for many a gateway to the extermination camps in Germany and Poland. However, the actual camp was in Hooghalen, which is about seven kilometers from the town of Westerbork, but still belongs to the municipality of Westerbork.

You start in Westerbork and cycle straight through to the first major town on the route: Beilen. This is such a typical Drenthe esdorp, built around a higher field, or es. This still forms the center of the place. The fact that this region has been inhabited for thousands of years was evident from the special discovery made there in 1955; a gold hoard from about 400, consisting of a bracelet, necklaces and 22 Roman gold coins. It was the richest treasure from Drenthe soil. The find can be viewed in the Drents Museum in Assen.

Just outside Beilen you pass the Molen van Makkum, a flour mill that is still drained by volunteers. On your way through the Drenthe countryside you will also come across beautiful old Saxon farms, including in the hamlet of Bruntinge. A salient detail of this town is that in April 1965 it was the last in the Netherlands to be connected to the electricity grid. The heaths, such as the Scharreveld, are the remnants of what used to be a vast heathland. Cultivation and cutting have fragmented the areas. Fortunately, nowadays the heath is used sparingly and grazers are used to prevent the areas from becoming overgrown with forest. More than half of the route is the cute museum village of Orvelte. This is really worth a longer stop. Cars are not allowed in the protected part of the village, but you can go straight through the historic center by bike. The village is believed to have originated between the 11th and 13th centuries.

People live in the village, but in most cases they have devoted themselves to an old craft. The village shops with craft items are very nice. For example, you will find a sawmill and blacksmith shop that still produce. The nice thing is that you can watch their work. The cheese dairy and bakery also make products on site that are sold directly to the doorstep. You will also find various studios and galleries in the village. Of course also the necessary tourist knick-knacks, but you just have to look through that. You can visit the center in a good hour, so that is best to do as a stopover.