Historic green villages, fens and forests

A wonderful cycling route through central Drenthe where heathland and fields alternate. You will pass through a number of typical Drenthe ash or green villages. The main feature of this architectural style is a green'square\\\', usually grassland, on which trees were planted. The farms were built around this green heart. The green square had a connecting function: the animals were gathered there in the evening and the trees were used as building material.

After you get on, you will soon pass two so-called ash or village greens. The small Zwiggelte and the more famous Westerbork. This last place is of course directly related to Camp Westerbork. However, this is located quite a few kilometers outside the village, almost against Hooghalen. You will not cycle past today, but afterwards you may be able to visit the so-called memory camp where you will find the famous rails monument on your own. Almost all authentic buildings of the former Westerbork camp have been removed, and on the site symbolic reconstructions refer to former camp buildings and barracks.

From Westerbork you cycle through the green heart of Drenthe. It is a nice quiet area with panoramic views. The heathlands you encounter are the remains of what used to be a vast heathland area. Reclamation and logging have fragmented the areas. New forests have been planted in some places, such as Meppen and Witteveen. The straight position of the thin trees shows that these forests are still young. The fields often grow root vegetables such as potatoes and sugar beets, which thrive on the lower peaty soil. About three-quarters of the way along the route you arrive in the nice museum village of Orvelte. This is really worth a longer stop. It is not big in itself, you can visit the center in about an hour. The historic center is still inhabited, although people here focus on visitors and engage in all kinds of authentic crafts. You will find village shops with craft items. For example, there is a sawmill and forge that still produce normally. The nice thing is that you can watch their work. The cheese factory and bakery also make products on site that are sold directly to your home.

You will also find various studios and galleries in the village. Of course also the necessary tourist trinkets, but you just have to look through that.

From Orvelte the landscape continues to change between heath, forest and arable land. This actually gives you Drenthe in a nutshell. This in combination with another green village, Elp, gives you a striking picture of this beautiful province.