Tour highlights of Den Helder

Your route starts at Camperplaats Jachtwerf Willemsoord. With the sea on three sides, Den Helder has a unique location. Napoleon Bonaparte also noticed this. He named the town the Gibraltar of the North in 1811. The ideal place to station a naval fleet. And the rest is history. Every Dutchman now knows Den Helder because of the eponymous position and naval base. This walking route takes you to one of those old fortresses, Fort Dirksz. Admiral. The fort was built by the French in 1813. At the end of the nineteenth century it was provided with bombproof shelters, with rooms for the troops and powder rooms. During World War II, the Germans placed an anti-aircraft battery on top of the old barracks. You walk back through the Helderse city center.