Round of batteries at Brakel

Your route starts at BY't VEER. Today you walk to the Old Batteries on the Meerdijk. These batteries were part of the nineteenth-century Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie, which ran from the Zuiderzee to the Biesbosch. In the event of a threat of war, the water line had to be flooded in order to protect the western part of the Netherlands. The earthen structures were provided with a concrete shelter in 1906. With the advent of aircraft in World War II, this defense tactic has become obsolete. You walk back along the Waal, with a beautiful view of the nature reserve of Slot Loevestein. Loevestein is located in the floodplains of the Maas and Waal, in the Munnikenland with its varied nature. Large grazers such as Konik horses and the unique Red Geus cattle live here.