Print this route

Want to experience the silence of the Weerribben? Put on your hiking boots to penetrate deep into this nature reserve. However pristine the Weerribben may look, it was created by cutting peat for centuries.

The Weerribben
The Weerribben is one of the most beautiful nature reserves in the Netherlands. And one of the quietest. You mainly hear nature here: the wind rustling through the reeds, the singing of reed warblers and reed warblers. And if you hear a splash in the water, it could be a duck or an otter. In the spring, however, the many birds ensure a bustle of activity, although this will sound like music to the ears of most nature lovers.

Ossenzijl
You walk a few kilometers along the banks of the Kalenbergergracht. The thin reed that grows here is often used as a covering on the hood and wooden octagon of windmills. On this canal are Ossenzijl and Kalenberg, a sailing village that was only accessible by boat until the late 1950s. At the Hoogeweg you see (at number 2) a former peat house. The route ends at Restaurant Ant Waeter where you can eat quietly on the terrace on the water.

Polder windmills on the Hoogeweg
On the Hoogeweg you will also see several nineteenth-century farm workers' homes. Small farmers once lived here who earned money in the winter by cutting reed or digging peat. There are also three windmills on this road. De Wicher is a spider mill from 1982 that drains the surrounding area. The mill is a replacement for a similar mill that was demolished here in 1943. You can also see the Tjasker Kalenberg from 1963 and the Tjasker Ossenzijl from 1977. Both are still able to grind, they provide the surrounding peat with water. Would you also like to explore this region by bike? Then drive route 343922.