Cycling through the rural area of Hoogeveen

Just below Hoogeveen you drive through the former peat area. There are now extensive meadows and fields here, but originally it was a wild, inaccessible peat area. The fact that peat was extracted here from the seventeenth century onwards is reflected in the layout of the landscape. The former drains have been drained and are now used as roads. You do not drive on winding country roads, but on straight streets. You pass through Elim, a village where the first peat workers settled around 1780. The village church was built in 1916 and is a national monument. Further on you drive a bit through the Hollandscheveld. This forest was created at the beginning of the nineteenth century and is one of the oldest reclamation forests in Drenthe. You can continue to enjoy your holiday at Family Camping Hendrikswijkje.